Phoenix
by CornellBound2020
Summary: After a very close brush with death, Rose and the others embark on their senior year, ready to put the past behind them. But it might not be easy considering new enemies, stressful duties, and a shocking secret from a lost friend. It all boils down to something no one at Lakeside High will ever forget.
1. Keep It Moving

**Warning: Mentions of sexual abuse near the end of the chapter.**

 **BlackCanary98: I'm glad you liked Bitter Victory and are excited for Pheonix. In this book I plan to have everyone try to put their lives back together after the events of Frosty Connections and Bitter Victory.**

Rose's POV

" _Hey, its Ava. I'm not at the phone right now. Please leave a message._ "

"Damnit, Ava," I groan softly, dialing her number. "Pick up the phone."

" _Hey, its Ava. I'm not at the phone right now. Please leave a message._ "

I've been getting the same message from her for months. Leave a message. Leave a message. Leave a message. Why isn't she picking up? Does she blame me for what happened to Uma? I hope nothing bad happened to her.

My phone rings, but it's from Ace.

"Hey, Rosie," he greets me in that sweet voice reserved for me. "You want me to come pick you up for school?"

"Thanks, but Roscoe insisted on driving me today. I'll see you by your office," I say. "Bye, cutie."

I hang up and sigh. Another day of seeing the faces of my classmates. Not something I was looking forward to. I heave my legs off of my bed and head to my bathroom. On the way I pass Ava's room. It's still the same as when she left 11 months ago. Next month, she'll have been gone for a year. Losing Uma must have really hurt her.

I shower and fix my hair rather quickly, leaving it big and wavy. I've been thinking about washing the pink dye out of my hair. But not now.

Roscoe's waiting for me in the foyer when I arrive downstairs, playing with Alicia (Or as he likes to call her, Rosaline). I still can't believe how big she's gotten in 10 months. She's sitting up and babbling. The next thing she'll be walking and talking. Alicia turns and stretches her stubby little arms toward me, urging me to pick her up and play with her. I carry her around the room for a while, her giggling and gurgling the whole time.

"OK, you two. We've got to get to school or you'll be late," Roscoe chuckles, reaching for Alicia. She starts to cry and whine, turning her body closer to mine. "Hmph, she's already attracted to you."

"Well, I do have a magnetic personality," I joke.

"Don't you dare make puns in front of my daughter," he scolded, but his face was teasing. "Let's go."

We pile into Roscoe's car and take off. He stops by a Dunkin' Donuts and buys us breakfast. Alicia tries to grab my donut. This makes Roscoe laugh.

"Girl doesn't even have teeth and she wants to take a bite out of everything," he says ruffling Alicia's hair. She tries to bite him, then pouts when he laughs again. He pulls up in front of my school.

"Bye, Big R."

"Bye, Little R."

He drives off, leaving me on the sidewalk. I see Ace up ahead and sneak up on him. I cover his eyes with my hands. He snickers.

"I wonder whose tiny hands are on my face,"' he asks, whirling around and catching me in a tight hug. He plants a kiss on both of my cheeks. "Hey, Rosie."

"Hey, yourself," I say. "What's the agenda for today?"

"Meet with basketball coach about equipment funding before class starts, morning announcements,briefing with the debate team 2nd period, power lunch with all student government members at that new restaurant nearby, address arson incident in the boys bathroom... _again_ during 5th period, talk with Jason about his last performance-"

At this I burst out laughing, remembering the incident where he got a little...intimate with a certain member of his audience. I don't think I've seen Aiden's face so red.

"Jason swore up and down it only _looked_ like lap dancing!"

"Right...so he just happened to end up grinding on Aiden and it was just a sheer coincidence that the lyrics were, 'tonight I'm lovin' you.' Either way, Professor Edwin wants us to talk to him about it."

"Speaking of Jason, he asked me to go to the mall with him and Aiden. He's trying to pick out a ring to surprise Aiden with."

"He must be taking this proposal very seriously," Ace comments.

"Well considering the last time he tried it…"

A heavy silence hangs over us. Ace clears his throat awkwardly.

"Well, better get on with it, Rosie. Time waits for no man," he says quickly, grasping my hand and pulling me towards the school doors.

As usual, whispers circulate throughout the hallways as we pass by. After word got out about Jessica's conviction, you can imagine how quickly people came around to beg for forgiveness. It was the same damn story all over again. I had enough of it.

 _A couple students approached me at my locker weeks after Jessica's death. Ace told me about how they didn't care when we went missing...how they laughed after he pleaded for them to help the guys find us. And now that I've finally been proven right, they want me to forgive them? Again?_

" _What?" I said cooly, fixing all of them with a glare. Clumps of students were gathered nearby, carefully listening._

" _Look, we were assholes, alright?" One of them blurted out. "We should've believed you from the start, and we're sorry."_

 _I laughed._

" _You're sorry...sorry for what? For making me lose all my jobs in one day? For essentially threatening the lives of 5 people? For the fact that you guys just willingly believed some girl from another school over me, the girl who's the reason you're all still here?!"_

 _I was breathing heavily at that point. I wasn't done yet._

" _This isn't the first time you've turned on me. Our school almost closed because of you. Hell, you didn't just let me down, you let my friends down too. They almost died. One of them...did die. Another one ran away from home weeks ago. So don't you dare come act like you're sorry. Because you're not sorry at all. You're just guilty. So fuck you all," I screamed_

 _I turn on my heel and storm towards the exit._

So the only reason I haven't left this school to ruin is because of the pledge I made years ago to create a safe place for students to learn.

The rest of the day seems to drag on until we get to the auditorium. Jay appears to be singing, lying on a piano face to face with his boyfriend while Aiden plays on the piano.

"So tell me that you love me, yeah. Tell me that I take your breath away. Maybe if you take one more..."

They lean in for a kiss. Ace clears his throat, making both of them jump from surprise.

"Oh, hey guys," Jason stammers, his face as red as Aiden's. "What's up?"

"Professor Edwin wants you to take your dancing down a few notches. And choose more school-friendly songs," I tell him.

Jason snorts.

"Is this about what happened two weeks ago? Look, when I'm up there performing, I don't just feel the music, it feels me."

"I'm pretty sure that wasn't the only thing feeling you but ok," Ace chuckles. "Anyway, Edwin thinks you're getting a little too…"

"Expressive?"

"Not the word I would use, but sure. Maybe keep your more provocative stuff for when the two of you are alone?" I suggest.

Aiden's face flushes a deeper shade of red. Jason laughs and caresses his boyfriend's cheek, giving him a small peck.

"Ok, guys. You're embarrassing Aiden here. I'll tone it down a bit during the next show. Look, it's almost time for practice, so I gotta go get ready," he says. "Have fun in Music Theory, Aiden."

"Ok, but make sure you eat your lunch I brought you. You spent the entire lunch period practicing," Aiden replies with a small frown.

"I know, I know. I'll be fine, babe. Don't worry about me."

"Duh, I'm your boyfriend. I have to worry," Aiden says. He cups Jason's face then pauses. "Uh, guys?"

"Hmm? Oh, sorry! We'll leave you alone," I say quickly, pulling Ace toward the exit.

Jason's POV

"Seriously Jason," Aiden says as I trail kisses down his neck. "I hope you aren't overworking yourself."

"I'm not," I insist. "I just like to push myself 110%"

I pull him gently onto my lap.

"Jay. Look at me. You're one of the few good things in my life. I can't lose you too," he says, looking down so I can't see his expression. He's still hurting.

"Aiden, you're not gonna lose me. I promise," I tell him, kissing the tip of his nose.

"Prove it," he whispers, straddling me and kissing me passionately on my jawline.

"Right now?" I ask with an eyebrow raised. " I have a few ideas that don't involve that shirt you're wearing."

I trace my finger around the buttons, tugging at one of them ever so slightly.

"Uh, Jason? I think we have an audience," he says suddenly. I look past him. Some of the glee club members have just walked in. Some, namely the girls, are giggling. Embarrassed, Aiden hops off my lap and bolts. "WowlookatthetimeIbettergettoclassbeforeI'mlatebyeloveyouJason!"

"Is this what the two of you do when the rest of us aren't here?" Katie, one of the older members and my second in command, jokes. "Damn, that's a pretty big hickey."

"What?!" I exclaim, slapping a hand to my face.

"I'm kidding, it's a small bruise," she laughs. "The new member should be here shortly while we set up. I heard he used to go to Hearst High School, but he's kinda cute. I think you'll like him."

"Maybe I would," I say. "If I didn't have a boyfriend."

Katie's...not Aiden's biggest fan. She doesn't hate him, she thinks he's too...broken to be in a proper relationship and that I deserve better. But she doesn't know the history we have with each other, so I usually take her advice with a grain of salt.

"And if you didn't have a boyfriend," I hear a silky voice say from the back of the auditorium. "What would you say about me?"

I look up, and a boy with icy blond hair and green eyes is staring back at me with a dazzling smile.

"And you are…?"

He approaches me, his eyes never leaving mine.

"Blake. Nicholas Blake. But you can call me Nick. I'm assuming you're the Jason fellow I've heard so much about? I can't say I'm disappointed. I've had a thing for brunettes."

"I'm sure you've just heard that I have a boyfriend," I stammer.

"That Asian dude you had in your lap a few minutes ago?"

"Yep. He's perfect," I sigh. Nick scoffs. "Is there a problem?"

"Oh, nothing. It's just...I highly doubt a guy like that is your type."

I scowl.

"How would _you_ know what my type is?" I demand. He looks me up and down.

"Easy. You're a performer. You were born for the stage. Him? He's more like the background musician," Nick says.

"Well, that's why our relationship works. We fit together because our personalities don't butt heads with each other. And for the record, I can be a little intense."

"I like intense," he says. "But let's not forget the reason why I'm here. Hearst didn't have a glee club, so I came here."

"Ok, what are you gonna perform?" I ask.

"I'm gonna sing. No dancing for now."

He strides over to the piano.

 **(A/N The inspiration for Nick's voice comes from NateWantsToBattle "It's Over, Isn't It?" I can't tell who's better, him or Leroy Sanchez!)**

"I was fine, with the men who would come into her life now and again…"

Ah, fuck. He's good. Too good.

"I was fine, 'cause I knew that they didn't really matter until you…I was fine when you came and we fought like it was all some silly game over her...who she'd choose. After all these years I'd never thought I'd lose."

Half the girls are already drooling over him. Ugh. Too bad his eyes are focused on me. I break away from his gaze.

"It's over isn't it, isn't it, isn't it over? It's over isn't it, isn't it, isn't it over? You won and she chose you, and she loved you and she's gone. It's over isn't it, why can't I move on?"

Oh boy, here comes the big part.

"War and glory, reinvention, Fusion, freedom, her attention. Out in daylight, my potential. Bold, precise, experimental. Who am I now in this world without her? Petty and dull, with the nerve to doubt her.What does it matter? It's already done.Now I've got to be there for her son!"

It's moving...passionate...there's something off about him. I just can't put my finger on it.

"It's over isn't it, isn't it, isn't it over? It's over isn't it, isn't it, isn't it over? You won and she chose you, and she loved you and she's gone... It's over isn't it, why can't I move on? It's over, isn't it, why can't I move on?"

The other members applaud loudly. Then they turn to me for the verdict.

"How was that, Jason?" Nick asks expectantly. "Did it meet your impossibly high standards?"

"I...uh," I stammer. I look around. The others would kill me if I said no. "I guess...your singing was...adequate. So...yeah, I guess."

He takes my hand and kisses it. I resist jumping back and slapping the smug look on his face.

"I know it'll be a pleasure working together."

"If this is going to be a long term thing," I say. "You have to understand that _I'm not interested in dating anyone else other than my boyfriend._ He's the love of my life and I could never hurt him be seeing another guy behind his back. I get it, you're attractive and talented. But I'm taken."

For a moment, something seems to click behind his eyes. He frowns, but quickly fixes it with a smirk.

"I get it. There's no reason why we can't 'just be friends.' But hey, at least you admitted you found me attractive."

I groan and roll my eyes.

"Whatever. Just let me give you my phone number so we can keep in touch about incoming competi- Hey!"

He takes my phone out of my hand and dials in the number himself. He hands it back. His contact is saved under "Nicky 3" Cringe.

Katie catches up with me after school in the parking lot as I'm waiting for Aiden.

"Why did you blow him off like that?" Katie asks. "He really looks like he's into you."

"Well, I'm not into him."

"Are you kidding? He's hot, he can sing, and he's got a lovely voice."

"If he's so hot, why don't you date him?"

"I don't think he's into girls."

"He might be. I don't care as long as he doesn't try to come on to me."

"Why can't you give him a chance? Just to explore your options..."

"Look, Katie. I love Aiden. I'm planning to propose to him before we graduate because my heart belongs to him and him only. Here he comes now."

I rush up to Aiden and sweep him up in a tight hug.

"Oh!" he gasps. "Well, hello to you to, Jason. Did you eat your lunch?"

"Yeah," I lie. I'd never found the time to eat it, I was too busy practicing. But I don't want to worry Aiden. "Let's meet up with Rose and Ace and go to the mall."

"Jay, there's some guy watching us," he says suddenly. I turn around. No one's there.

"What did he look like?" I ask.

"He had blonde hair and green eyes. I don't know...he looked annoyed or angry for some reason."

 _Nick. I swear to God if you even think about hurting Aiden you'll be carried out of school in a body bag._

"I'm sure it was nothing, babe."

Aiden and I go our separate ways at the mall. Him with Ace to go check out a music store and me with Rose to help me pick out an engagement ring.

"Dang, these are steep prices for rings," Rose comments, checking out the prices.

"I'm willing to pay if I have to," I say. "Somehow…"

"I'm pretty sure Aiden won't care what kind of ring you get him. Maybe he just wants a proposal that'll be special to the both of you."

"That's why I have to get a ring. Everyone knows proposals don't mean anything if you don't have a ring to go with it!"

Rose gives me a funny look.

"Who told you that?"

"My dad."

"Well, his opinion is officially cancelled anyway. I don't think we're going to find anything, let's go and-"

"Wait!" I exclaim, pointing at a display case. Inside is a silver ring with a little piano on top. The box it comes in is also a piano. "It's perfect! It's so him!"

"Oof, this costs way more than a few Hamiltons." Rose says.

"I have to get it! Trust me, he'll love it. I just gotta save enough money for it. Now all I have to do is find the perfect setting!"

"Well, your 1 year anniversary is coming up in a few weeks. Maybe you could do it then."

"I don't know...it seems too soon. Especially since it's so close to…"

There's that awful silence again.

"I'm sure you'll figure something out. Come on, I bet our boyfriends are waiting for us."

Aiden's POV

 **Karma'sComing123: You're a liar, you know that?**

I furrow my brow at the message. Who was this person, and why were they calling me a liar?

 **YourMainVirtuoso: Who is this?**

 **Karma'sComing123: You don't need to know who I am. I know exactly who you are, Aiden Zhou.**

 **YourMainVirtuoso: What do you want from me?**

 **Karma'sComing123: Wasn't the username obvious?**

 **YourMainVirtuoso: What did I do wrong?**

 **Karma'sComing123: Everyone else may have put the past behind them, but deep down, you know Jessica never hurt you.**

My heart skips a beat. Thoughts of restless nights due to nightmares come flooding back.

 **YourMainVirtuoso: You don't know what you're talking about. She nearly killed me and my friends.**

 **Karma'sComing123: You're happy she's dead, aren't you?**

 **YourMainVirtuoso: No! Never. I'm just glad I don't have to live in fear because of her anymore.**

 **Karma'sComing123: Ha, you pathetic little boy. You had your feelings hurt so you accuse a girl of abuse and have her killed?**

 **YourMainVirtuoso: I didn't kill her! She dragged me into traffic.**

 **Karma'sComing123: LIAR. You knew what you were getting yourself into when you dated her. Whatever you claimed happened was your own fault. Now she's dead because of you. I wish you died with her.**

 **YourMainVirtuoso:It's not my fault…**

 **Karma'sComing123: You know what? I was gonna go easy on you, but since you want to play games, I'm gonna decimate you. You're gonna lose everything you ever cared about. Consider everything you once knew destroyed. No more music playing, no more Julliard. No more** _ **Jason**_ **.**

 **YourMainVirtuoso: No, please. Not Jason.**

 **Karma'sComing123: Well, since I'm typically a nice person, let's just play a little game. I play nice for a while in exchange for one secret.**

 **YourMainVirtuoso: You...you want one of my secrets?**

 **Karma'sComing123: Well, doesn't have to be yours per se. Just give me something juicy.**

 **YourMainVirtuoso: Ok, one time, I made out with a girl in a janitor's closet.**

 **Karma'sComing123: Lame. Something else. Something deep.**

 **YourMainVirtuoso: Um...I like it when…**

So I began to describe in great detail what usually happens after Jason and I get home and my parents aren't in the house.

 **Karma'sComing123: Ooh, spicy! I guess this'll keep me off your ass for a week or two.**

 **YourMainVirtuoso: A week!?**

 **Karma'sComing123: What, you thought I was going to be fair. I can't wait to see you crumble you lying son of a bitch.**

"Aiden?" I jump at the sound of Ace's voice.

"W-what?"

"I...just wanted to ask if you wanted some of my pretzel?"

"Sorry, Ace. I'm a little worked up."

He sits down next to me.

"You still having nightmares?"

"Yeah."

"You talk to a therapist yet?"

"No. You?"

"Haven't found the time."

"What if we both promised to go to therapy?"

"I've been putting this off for quite a long time...I guess it couldn't hurt."

I smile.

"Awesome. Hey, here come Rose and Jason."

"Hey, babe," Jay says, planting a kiss on my cheek. "You guys have fun?"

I nod. Rose seems to be looking off at something in the distance.

"What is it, Rose?" Ace asks.

"Look over by the pharmacy. See that girl. She looks just like Ava!"

Everyone gasps. The girl in question turns around, her hand over her stomach. Jason shakes his head.

"No offense, but the last time I saw Ava, she wasn't so...generous in the stomach area." Jason says.

" _Jason_!" Rose hisses. "She might have just gained weight or had a large breakfast. I know it's her, look at the red hair, the green eyes, those freckles on her face. It has to be her. _AVA!_ "

The girl looks up. Recognition passes, and she flees!

"Ava, wait!" Rose calls after her. She tries to follow her, but Ace holds her back.

"She'll...she'll come when she's ready, Rose."

"When will that be? It's been eleven months!"

"Rosie...please wait. You might scare her off completely."

"Fine," Rose sighs.

(Sneak Peek of Next Chapter)

Ava's POV

" _Get the hell off me!" I screamed. He laughed, and kept going. I knew I shouldn't have let my guard down around this dude. I can't believe I fell for his stupid nice guy act. Why did I trust him when he found me at the park crying about Uma._

" _You're so beautiful, Avie," he whispered, using the nickname only Uma calls me. I tried to push him off, but he was too strong. "Come on, stop struggling. I'm trying to cure you."_

 _He didn't like the fact that I told him I was into girls. He didn't like how I told him to do what he did to me to himself. He especially didn't like how I kept biting and scratching him the whole time._

 _By the time I'd managed to get away from him, the deed was already done. I remember slashing his chest with my nails as I gathered my things and left._

 _With shaky anger I sneered, "If you ever touch me like that again, I'll murder you and leave your body in a lake..."_

 _Unfortunately, he left me with a little parting gift that I've had for a little over five months.I found out about it 3 months later_

I could never let the others see me like this. Especially Rose. She'd think this was her fault, but I was the one who insisted on leaving. When I find the bastard who did this to me, he'll pay big time.

I run as fast as I can away from Rose's view and plop on a bench, panting heavily. I came back to town after the incident so I could find a doctor, but I didn't expect to run into Rose there. I rub my stomach. I am way too big for 5 months. I better find someone to deal with this and fast.

"Just a few more months, Ava," I tell myself. "A few more months and you can put all of this behind you."


	2. A Cry For Help

**BlackCanary98: Nick basically has a massive crush on Jason and hates the fact that h's dating Aiden. So he'll do anything in his power to drive a wedge between them. Yeah, Ava's got a lot going on for her in the future. Hopefully she'll reach out to her friends for help. And, well, Jason's pretty stubborn. So if he's adamant about buying an expensive ring to propose to Aiden, he'll find a way to do it.**

Ava's POV

I feel everyone's eyes on me at the clinic. I mean, why wouldn't they? I'm an eighteen year old girl all alone with a belly the size of her head. My back hurts and I can't stop going to the bathroom with my stomach gurgling so much. I squirm around in the seat. Were chairs always this hard to get comfortable in? My clothes feel sticky and hot. I unbutton the bottom of my blouse to give my stomach room to breathe in my already stretchy yoga pants. An older woman nudges her daughter and points at me.

"This is why you're supposed to wait until marriage, Patricia," she says, not even trying to be discreet about it. "You'll end up like that little whore over there, with the rest of your life ruined by underage pregnancy."

I really wish Rose were here right now.

"Miss Edwards? The doctor is ready to see you now," the short nurse announces. After my close encounter with Rose yesterday evening I get up and practically waddle out of the waiting room. A dark-skinned, slender woman is waiting for me when I get there.

"You must be Ava," she says, giving me a small smile. "Come, sit. We'll be here for a while."

I manage to sit on one of the chairs she has in the room. It's way too snug with the way my butt and hips are growing. We sit in silence for a while.

"So, care to tell me why we're here today?" She asks. I swear, she sounds just Rose.

"I think it's pretty obvious," I mutter, holding my stomach. "I...I'm pregnant."

"How long have you known?"

"About three months. But I think its been like this for longer."

"If you don't mind me asking, do you know...how this happened?"

My gut twists a little hearing this. My breathing quickens. I silently vow that the next time I see the lowly son of a bitch that caused all this, I'd give him as much pain as he gave me. My fists clench. The doctor seems to understand and puts a comforting hand on my shoulder.

"You didn't want to, did you?"

I shake my head no.

"I should've decapitated him even before I found out he got me pregnant," I snarl, balling my hands into fists.

"Well, I understand you're upset and you have every right to be, but right now we need to think about your future with your child. Have you had an ultrasound yet?"

I shake my head no.

"I just wanna know why I'm getting so big so fast."

"You may just be bloated from retaining too much water, but let me check. Come here."

She gets me settled and asks me to lift up my shirt. She places the ultrasound on my belly. I shiver from the cold gel.

"Hm...do you want to know what sex the baby is?"

"Uh, sure…"

"Ok, let me see...Oh!"

My heart goes into panic mode real fast. Could there be a complication?

"What? What's wrong?!"

"Nothing serious, it's just...you're having twin boys."

"Whaaaaaat?!" I exclaim before everything goes black.

…

"Ava? Ava, are you alright?" I hear someone say. I come to and the doctor and her nurse are standing over me.

"Well, I had a dream that I was having twins…"

"Well, that part's true. This is a lot to take in. I had my child when I was a teenager too."

"What happened?"

"I had her at 17. I still remember her small button brown eyes and chubby cheeks. She was so tiny it was hard to keep track of her when I want to college. Then, one day...I was on the bus ride home...it was so crowded. I should've held her hand better. When I got off, she wasn't there. I tried to run after the bus...but it drove away. I never saw her again. I cried for weeks. Later I graduated and married a divorced police officer who had a son from his last marriage. Things were fine until a missing child report came up with her exact description, and my husband was on the case. I was worried that he'd find out about my child and put me in jail. That all my hard work would be for nothing. So I left and changed my entire identity and started over. I was presumed dead. So here am now helping others raise their families when I couldn't even raise mine. The last I heard of my daughter my husband had adopted her."

"...and what was the name of your daughter?"

"Rose. Why?"

I gasp. Everything started to make sense. The similar features, the personality...especially the fact that Rose was adopted by Officer Brinkwater.

"That story sounds so similar to what happened to my best friend. Except, she thinks her mother abandoned her."

"Rose? My Rose?"

"She was three-"

"-years old. Oh my god, it IS Rose."

She pulls up a picture of a small little girl with her brown hair in pigtails. She looks just the same as when I met Rose in preschool.

"So...why did you come back?"

"After being missing for 14 years, I didn't think anyone would recognize me. I'm not sure I want them to. How is Rose?"

"I'm...I'm not sure. I used to live with her before I left 11 months ago. I was trying to find some solace after I lost someone dear to me. She saw me at the mall from the pharmacy. She's worried about me."

"Maybe you should go back to her. You'll need someone to support you at this time."

"Are you going to tell Rose the truth?" I ask.

"It's ok...if you want to tell her. I'll let her come find me when she's ready."

She gives me advice on what to eat and drink and habits to avoid for the next few months. I nod, thank her for her time and leave.

Aiden's POV

Damn, Jason must be practicing again. I better go take his lunch to him. I have a feeling he didn't eat yesterday like he said he did.

Before I get to the auditorium, I bump into someone coming out of it. It's the same boy I saw in the parking lot. I jump and stumble backwards. He catches me quickly. His green eyes bore into mine, making me blush.

"Um...I have a boyfriend…" I stammer. He smirks.

"Trust me, I've noticed," he says. "My name's Nick. I'm kinda new around here. I don't suppose you could help me find my way around the school?"

"I guess...why were you glaring at us in the parking lot yesterday?"

"My bad. There was something in my eye at that moment. I didn't mean to come off as unfriendly. Now, I've been trying to locate the computer lab but I can't seem to find it."

"I could take you there. It's on the fourth floor. I just have to take this lunch to Jason."

"Of course. I have to take a phone call in a bit anyway."

I head inside the auditorium, where Jason is dancing by himself, locked in concentration. He smiles when he sees me, wrapping me in a sweaty hug.

"Ew, you're covered in sweat," I laugh.

"I guess you'll have to endure this sweaty bear hug," he says, nuzzling my neck and trying to kiss me.

"No, please! Anything but that!" I exclaim, laughing as Jason picks me up, kisses me and sets me down. He lets go, his movements a bit shaky.

"So...what's up?"

"I brought you your lunch again. And it looks like you might need it. You look a little pale."

"Aww...you care too much," he says. "I'm fine. Just working hard as usual."

"Ok, just be careful," I tell him, giving him a quick peck on the cheek before I leave. Nick's still on the phone.

"...just make sure everything's ready when I get there, alright? Whatever. I gotta call you back."

"Hey."

"Right. Let's go to the computer lab."

"So...you're a member of the glee club now?" I ask as we ascend the stairwell.

"Yeah, pretty much. I have to say, Jason's...quite high maintenance."

"What do you mean?"

"I've heard he can be kinda aggressive."

"I know...he's very passionate about everything he does."

"I'd hate if you got hurt because of it."

"...Why?"

"Look, I didn't want to say anything because I didn't know that the two of you were exclusively dating...but I've seen him flirting with the other members during practice."

"I mean, I know Jason tends to get a bit intimate during his performances, but I don't think he'd…"

"He even came on to me a few times. I came in the auditorium to ask him where the computer lab was and he asked if I wanted a 'private performance' after he was done. I left quickly after that."

"No...Jason would never do that to me...I think you just jumped to conclusions."

"Aiden, I know it hurts to think that someone you cared about would ever treat you so poorly. Trust me, I know that feeling. But hey, if things don't work out for the two, you'll have a friend in me."

"I do?"

"Yep. I have a feeling we'd make a great team. Well, here's the computer lab. Thanks, Aiden."

"You're welco- oof!" He gives me a tight hug, his hands around my waist. Alarm bells are ringing in my mind. No one except Jason hugs me like that. Even the most Ace ever does is a one sided arm around my shoulder. I twist away from him. "What was that?!"

"Apologies. My family's pretty big on affection, so it happens. Just remember what I said, Aiden," he says before disappearing into the computer lab. I take off in the other direction as fast as I can.

 **Karma'sComing123: Tsk, tsk, Aiden. Always hopping from one hot person to the next.**

 **YourMainVirtuoso: Huh? What are you talking about?**

 **Karma'sComing123: I saw you hugging Nick just now. Imagine how crushed Jason would be if he heard about this.**

I blink. This just happened. How the hell would this person know about Nick hugging me?

 **YourMainVirtuoso: You don't know a thing. He hugged me.**

 **Karma'sComing123: Excuses, excuses. I think another secret will be in order.**

 **YourMainVirtuoso: But...I told you one yesterday. I told several. You said you'd leave me alone for a week!**

 **Karma'sComing123: 'Bout that...I'm kinda bored now. So, let's hear it. I know you're outside the boy's bathroom.**

I nearly drop my phone from fright and look through the hallways. No one's there. Am I being paranoid? Who was this person and why did they keep bothering me?

 **YourMainVirtuoso: Leave me alone. I haven't done anything to you!**

 **Karma'sComing123: What, is the little crybaby going to go whine to the police again? You trying to get ME killed too?**

 **YourMainVirtuoso: I didn't kill Jessica! She ran into traffic and killed herself!**

 **Karma'sComing123: You keep telling yourself that…**

 **Karma'sComing123: I'm not kidding. I'll ruin you unless you spill.**

 **Karma'sComing123: I'm waiting, Aiden.**

 **YourMainVirtuoso: Ok, ok!**

I take a deep breath and type my answer before pressing send, my hands shaking.

 **YourMainVirtuoso:...I'm worried Jason's changed his mind about proposing to me.**

 **Karma'sComing123: Ooh, do tell!**

 **YourMainVirtuoso:...I heard a rumor that he was...cheating on me. I don't want to believe it, but...he's been busy lately during lunch and sometimes after school. Sometimes he leaves home earlier than I do for glee club practice. I know he's dedicated to what he does...What if I'm not good enough for him anymore?**

 **Karma'sComing123: Maybe he's stopped caring about you. I wouldn't blame him. If I were him I'd get sick of you too. Who wants a broken person as their boyfriend, much less a husband?**

 **YourMainVirtuoso: You're wrong! I'm not broken and he loves me. He told me!**

 **Karma'sComing123: You can't always believe everything you're told, now can you, Aiden? I'll be watching your every move. Tell anyone I'm texting you and you're a dead man. Let's hope you don't slip up too badly before I ruin you.**

I'm shaking so badly that I duck into the bathroom stall. I don't think I can bear to hear anymore from this guy. Whoever he is. I shove my phone in my back pocket and feel something poking my fingers. I pull it out. It's the tickets for the opera date Jason and I are going to see tonight. If he even makes it.

Nick's POV

"Alright everyone, let's take five and then run that number from the top," Jason says after school . It's a good thing I'm a fast learner, and blend right in with everyone else. It was also quite lucky that one of their members graduated last year and were in need for a replacement. He runs a hand through his hair, wiping the sweat from his face. For a trans boy, he's quite built. It's too bad he's taken. For now…

He leans uneasily against the wall, breathing heavily. I can tell he's rather fatigued from the long hours of practice. From what I've heard from that Katie girl, he pushes himself harder than he does with any of the other members. That's kinda hot to see him so passionate about what he does. I walk over to him.

"Hey, Jason," I say.

"What's up?" he asks, looking up at me with his sapphire orbs.

"You look unwell. Perhaps you should rest a bit longer."

Jason shakes his head.

"Uh-uh. A big competition is coming up soon and the prize is 25,000 for the whole team. Which is pretty good since we have 25 members. So I can't afford to rest. If I look bad, the whole team looks bad."

"What could possibly be worth 1,000 dollars?"

"...Something important," he answers vaguely. I bet he's talking about the proposal I heard him mention in the parking lot.

"Well, if you say so. It'd be a shame if something happened to you because you pushed yourself too hard."

He chuckles, mustering up a sexy grin.

"Please. Too hard is not in my vocabulary."He gets up and tells everyone to get back to their positions. "Ok, a little slower from that section to the left. Jeffery, remember that you're supposed to pair with Miley, not Adam when we get to the chorus. Susanne, smile less and let your movements tell your story. And Nick?"

"Yeah?"

"Keep up the good work, I guess."

"Thanks." I try hard not to blush. The music starts. It's a fast, upbeat tune. One little slip up and you'd mess up the choreography. Try doing that and trying to sing well at the same time. From a distance, Jason looks like he's chugged a Red Bull right before we started. He must be good at hiding his weakness. We get to the part where we get into groups of three and flip one person in the air. I get into Jason's group. He gets up uneasily. When he tries to flip, his leg gives out suddenly and he falls backwards. The others cringe as he hits the ground hard.

"Jason, are you ok?" Katie gasps, kneeling at his side. He gets up quickly, his face a deep shade of red.

"I'm fine!" he says quickly. "Just run that again without me. My group, just pretend that I'm there. I'll be back in a minute."

He takes off. Katie sighs.

"I hate it when he gets like this," she complains. "If it were anyone but himself, he would've said something like, 'It's fine, we'll work on this later, go get a drink of water,' and offer to take them to the nurse if anyone was hurt."

"He really cares about glee club, doesn't he?"

"He started the club in his sophomore year when he was new here with only 10 members. Now, we have 25, and he makes sure he knows each and every last one of our names by heart. I can't help but think something's bothering him. He wasn't like this before last year, around this time."

"What happened?"

"His _boyfriend_ happened. Now, it's like nothing Jason does is good enough for himself. I just feel he'd be better off without Aiden. Not that I have anything personal against him. Maybe Jay'd be better with someone...more stable. Someone like you, actually."

"Who, me?"

"Yeah. Who's gonna hold him together when he falls apart? Probably not Aiden, who's probably done so already. You and Jay are both performers, so it'd work out with your schedules. I just wish Jason would see that."

"Maybe I should talk to him."

"Would you? Maybe he'll warm up to you."

I smile graciously and head out to the hall. I turn the corner when I see them.

"Don't forget about our date tonight," Aiden says, slipping a ticket in Jay's pocket.

"I won't. I promise," Jason replies, brushing a kiss on his cheeks. "Just let me get in another hour of practice in and I'll meet you at home, K?"

"Jay, you look really pale. When's the last time you ate something today?"

"Don't worry about that, Aiden. Worry about making sure you look handsome for our date," Jay dodges the question.

"But Jason-"

"Later, babe!" He says, walking off. I rush back to the auditorium before he sees me.

"Are you feeling better, Jason?" Katie asks.

"Much better. Let's take it from the top, guys."

So we continue with practice like nothing happened. At last, practice ends with Jason telling everyone to rest but keep practicing the routine.

"Jason, some of the team is going out for milkshakes and hamburgers. Wanna come?" I ask. Jason shakes his head.

"Sorry guys. I've got a date with Aiden tonight. Showing up's the least I can do after blowing him off all week."

On the inside, my blood boils. Seriously, what does he see in Aiden that he doesn't see in me? Ugh. No matter. I'll just see to it that Jason can't make it to his date in time.

"That's too bad, Jason," I pout.

"Yeah, sorry guys. Hey, has anyone seen my phone?" he asks.

"Maybe you left in the locker room?" One of the guys suggests. Jason shrugs and heads towards the locker room. I quietly follow him. He's singing to himself.

" _If this is my last night with you….hold me like I'm more than just a friend…_ "

He opens one of the lockers, his back turned to me. Without warning I shove him in, slam the door and lock it. I find his phone. Aiden sent him a selfie with him in a blue suit.

 **YourMainVirtuoso: Can't wait to see you for our date, Jason ;)**

Oh, you poor, poor fool. I'm afraid Jason's gonna have to take a rain check on you tonight.

 **PrinceJay: Sorry babe, the guys invited me out for milkshakes. Besides, operas are boring. Like, do you even know me at all? I probably won't be home until late. Don't wait up for me. Seriously, don't. That's kinda clingy.**

"Hey?! What the hell?! C'mon, guys, this isn't funny! Let me out!" I hear Jason shout from the locker. He pounds furiously on the door. "I have a date tonight!"

I ignore his protests as I stroll out of the locker room.

Jason's POV

I don't know how long I've been in the locker. I'm just lucky the custodian finally heard me and let me out. I found my phone on the bench. I rush home as soon as possible. It's already dark out. I make it to Aiden's room when I hear sniffling.

"H-he said I was being clingy. Well, I'm sorry I actually care about his health," he says to someone on the phone. "He also said he thought the opera was boring and that I didn't know him at all...I know he's obviously stressed, but I just wanted to help him...Maybe his friends were right about me...I'm not that naive, Ace. I know what they've been saying behind my back."

I quickly check my phone. There is a text from me...but I didn't send it. Oh God, Aiden must think I stood him up!

"...you think he's going to break up with me?"

I lightly know on the door.

"I...I gotta call you back Ace. I think he's here. Bye."

I open the door.

"Aiden, I am _**so**_ sorry for standing you up, I-"

"It's fine, Jason." He says. He swallows hard and gives me a tight smile. "Really. I'm just glad you're back home."

He gives me a quick peck on the lips and heads to bed. I lie next to him and try to sleep.

What's that vibrating noise?

I turn on my side and see Aiden's phone on the bedpost light. Who the hell could be texting him at this hour. I look back at Aiden. I hope he's asleep by now. I carefully reach over and grab his phone. Who is this Karma'sComing123 person and why are they texting him so frequently. But before I can look at any of the messages, someone snatches the phone out of my hands. I look up into Aiden's glaring face.

"What do you think you're doing with my phone?"

Ace's POV

My girlfriend laughs as I pin her on the couch and begin tickling her underarms and tummy. We were watching a marathon of _Law and Order: Special Victims Unit_ , when we got into a little argument about the characters.

"Ace, we're going to wake up the whole neighborhood if we keep this up," Rose giggles.

"Not until you admit that Detective Elliot Stabler was a better partner for Detective Olivia Benson than Amaro!"

"I told you, they're both equally good with their strengths and weaknesses. You just prefer Stabler because he has history with Benson!"

"So-"

The doorbell rings. Rose gets up to answer it, and gasps.

"Ava!" She pulls her friend into a tight hug.

"Easy there, Rose!" Ava says,gently prying her off. She looks a lot different from last year. Longer hair, fuller face, protruding stomach...wait what?

"Oh my god," Rose gasps. "Ava, what happened to you?"

Ava grimaces.

"Long story short," she growls through gritted teeth. "A guy tricked me and tried to get me to 'see what it's like being with a dude. I couldn't get away from him in time. So now, here I am, 4 months away from giving birth to twin boys."

"Christ, that's awful," I groan. "Did you report this to the authorities?"

"What's the point? You know they always get away in the end," she snarls.

"Oh, Ava," Rose cries, throwing her arms around Ava's neck. "I'm so sorry I let this happen to you."

"No, it's my fault. I was the one who insisted on leaving. I wanted to clear my head and get some closure. But when I got back to the court, the police tape was still around Jessica's corpse, but Uma's was nowhere to be found. I kept checking the cemetery for weeks. Jessica was there. She wasn't. I became convinced that she wasn't dead after all and in hiding. So I went to look for her. I couldn't find her."

"Ava, we're going to help you through this," Rose promises. "You won't be alone again."

Ava smiles a little. She suddenly yelps, clutching her stomach.

"What's wrong?" I ask, panic in my voice. I sincerely hope she wasn't having a miscarriage.

"They're moving!" She whisper-yells. "The twins! They've started kicking!"

Rose takes her hands and squeezes them. Ava watches her sons kick with a sort of innocent awe.

"Ava…"

"Oh my god...it's actually real. This whole time I thought it was just a clump of cells taking up space in my body. But now...feeling them actually move inside me...Rose, I don't think I'm ready for this!"

"I understand, Ava. You were unexpectedly forced into something completely out of your comfort zone."

Ava tries to blink back tears, but they start streaming down her face.

"Rose...I can't get rid of them...but I'm too young to take care of a child, much less two! I'm worried I'll be a horrible mother to them...like my parents were to me. Worse...I'm worried they'll end up like their father."

"Of course not, Avie! I'm gonna stick with you no matter what happens. Just don't run away again, ok?"

Ava sniffs and nods, pulling Rose in for another hug. In spite of our history at the beginning, I can actually see where she's coming from. Her own parents practically disowned her and the only girl who actually reciprocated her feelings has disappeared off the face of the earth. And now this. We'll have to discuss Ava getting back into the school system, but that can wait.


	3. Where Your Loyalties Lie

**BlackCanary98: I know. Kinda funny how you have shows like "16 and Pregnant" but never "16 and Impregnanted a Girl." I also hate how people assume that when an underage girl gets pregnant it's because she was sleeping 'll see if Rose actually attempts to reach out to her mother after 13 years of being gone. Katie has a twisted sense of what is right vs what is wrong, and believes that interferring in Jay's love life is for his own good. Nick simply feels that he's entitled to Jason just because he finds him attractive. He's not used to people rejecting him, though, and will resort to drastic measures if necessary. Karma'sComing123 knows Aiden would do anything to keep his loved ones safe, and explicitly told him Jason would be harmed if anyone gets involved. So he keeps quiet, even if it means acting cold towards Jason.**

Ava's POV

"And with a few clicks, it's like Ava was never absent for 11 months," Wes says, shutting off his computer and turning to me. I told him about her situation and he agreed to hack into the school system so she wouldn't be held back.

"Thanks," I mutter quietly. "I just hope I'll still be able to go to a good college now."

"There are a couple decent schools with app deadlines in February," Wes says. "It's not too late."

"Not exactly what I meant…" I say, looking down at my constantly growing body. At this rate, nothing's gonna fit me. Rose will be absolutely ecstatic to take me clothes shopping.

"How are you holding up, Ava?" Rose asks. I shrug.

"As much as I can, I guess. Do I have to go back to school?"

"Don't worry, you're in all of my classes, so I'll help you catch up," Rose assures me, squeezing my shoulder. I consider telling Rose the truth about her mom. Maybe when we get home from school. Now, I have to go inside and face my peers.

"I think I'll be fine," I tell Rose, letting her move on to catch up with her boyfriend. I brace myself and step through the doors. Thankfully, almost everyone is preoccupied with whatever the hell they usually do. Phew.

I'm piling my books into my bag when I feel the sudden urge to use the bathroom. I swear, one of the twins is practically squeezing my bladder all the time. I rush over to the bathroom, but some girls are in there, either smoking or texting on their phones. Security at this school is so lax...Kids could be doing it in the stalls and they wouldn't bat an eye.

"...Jay looked so sad this morning," One of the girls says to her friend. "Did he say anything to you, Katie?"

The other girl, her blond hair tied in a messy ponytail, sighs, saying, "He had a fight with his boyfriend last night. Something about him missing their date and then his boyfriend not telling him who's texting him late at night. I warned him this would happen, but no! He wants to get all, 'he'll get over it, I'll make it up to him somehow,' and then I'm like, 'is he always this moody, Jay. No offense but maybe you should-"

"I'd hate to interrupt this riveting conversation," I groan, clutching my stomach which probably now sounds like a dying whale. "But I really have to use the bathroom."

The first girl twirls a cigarette in her manicured fingers. I should back up a bit. I've been told even secondhand smoke could be bad for the babies.

"Well, we're still having this 'riveting conversation,' so you'll just have to wait, sweetheart," she says with a fake smile.

"You're taking up space in the stall, so you need to get out and let me go," I say, trying not to lose my temper. The girl, not Katie, looks me up and down. Ah, fuck. Here it comes.

"If anyone's taking up space, it's you," she sneers.

"Come on, lay off her," Katie scolds her friend.

"Oh I'm sorry," the girl says mockingly. "Did I hurt the little children's feelings?"

She lifts up my shirt, poking my swollen gut. It suddenly strikes me that this is the same girl whose mother mocked me at the clinic yesterday. I wrap my arms around myself self-consciously.

"Patty, let's go," Katie insists, tugging at her friend's arm, but she doesn't seem to listen.

"You're that girl my mom warned me about yesterday. I've heard of the school slut but I didn't think we actually had one. So who's the father, Ava? Or do you not kn-"

WHAM!

My fist collides with the side of her face and she goes sprawling backwards. I can already see blood coming from the side of her face.

"You don't know a damn thing, so keep your mouth shut," I yell. "Now if you'll excuse me, I have to use the bathroom."

 _It had been months since the attack and I started to feel very weird and sick. II was hiding out behind a baker dumpster when I felt a weird lurch in my stomach. I immediately rushed to puke out my guts. This happened for days. I wondered what the hell was wrong with me before it hit me._

" _No...god no!" I gasped. "I can't be…"_

 _I clasped my hand over my stomach. There was only one way to be sure. With the remaining money I had I bought a pregnancy test. I hid in the bathroom at the mall to take it. The time it took for me to see the results was agonizing._

 _At last...the results were starting to appear…_

" _No...no…" I choke. "That...bastard!"_

 _I put a hand over my stomach. Within months it would grow until everyone could easily tell._

 _I threw the test away and ran as fast as my two legs could take me out of the mall._

I slam the stall door shut.

"You'll pay for that, you fat bitch," Patty says from the outside. "By the time you get out of that stall the whole school's gonna know your dirty little secret."

"Do you kiss your mom with that dirty little mouth, _Patty_?" I retort. No answer. Whatever. If it wasn't obvious already, they'll all know now. I hear the bathroom door open and close. Someone taps on my stall.

"Hello?" goes an amazingly soft voice.

"Um, occupied?" I call back.

"I just wanted to make sure you were ok. I heard that girl harassing you and thought you could use a friend."

I finish my business and open the door to a petite girl standing in the doorway. She brushes her jet black hair from her face, her grey eyes looking at me sort concern.

"I'm fine, but thanks for asking," I say.

"You're probably going through a lot right now. I know how that feels."

"You do? How?"

"Let's just say...I know. My name's Nicole. You can call me Nicki I'm new here. My brother Nicholas and I used to go to Hearst. I think you can understand why we left," she says. "Nick's been one of the popular guys. Sweet and charismatic on the outside, cruel and possessive on the inside. Whatever he wants, he takes, damn the consquenses. There are rumors about his mean streak...that he got a cheerleader suspended so he could hit on her boyfriend...that the last girl that broke up with him 'suddenly had to move' because he wouldn't take no for an answer ...it became too much for my mom. So she transferred us here. In sorry for rambling on about my life story like this, I'm sure you have to get to class."

"Actually, I'd rather stay here," I tell her. Nicki nervously twirls a strand of hair around her finger. I'm easily getting Uma vibes off of this girl, and I don't know how to feel about it, considering the last time. "The twins here aren't really feeling Environmental Science class right now."

"Oh, you're having twins? I thought you were...Um, forget I said anything," Nicki mumbles, blushing.

"It's understandable, considering I already look close to full term," I chuckle.

"So...is the father in the picture or-"

I scowl.

"If I had my way, he wouldn't be after what he did to me."

Nicki doesn't press the matter anymore and I'm grateful.

"So...we skipping class?"

"Duh. I better wait until the dust settles after Patty drops this bombshell on the school."

Katie's POV

"Guys," Jay says calmly at the beginning of glee club practice. "Yesterday, I was supposed to go on a date with my boyfriend, when one of you decided it would be funny to shove me in a locker and make me miss my date. Now, I do appreciate the occasional prank now and then...but seriously? I haven't been able to properly spend time with my boyfriend in weeks because I've been practicing for the big competition coming up next week, and he really wanted me to show up. He was really upset when I didn't. So I'll try to keep my love life and work separate, but please don't try to interfere with my business as a 'joke'."

I can't help but roll my eyes. Whoever locked Jason in that locker probably did him a favor. Aiden ought to understand that being part of a team means you have to make sacrifices, even Jason.

Jay came up to me all sad this morning.

" _Hey," I said._

" _Hey yourself," he replied glumly._

" _What's wrong?" I asked, as if I didn't already know._

" _Aiden's giving me the silent treatment," he told me. "Somebody made me miss my date and sent him a rude text. At first he acted like it was all fine. But then I noticed he's been getting texts from some guy named Karma'sComing123. I tried to look at the messages...which was a poor move on my part...and he grabbed the phone from me. I asked him who was texting him and he said it was none of my business. He slept on the couch that night and didn't talk to me at all this morning. I feel so bad for invading his privacy, but I can't help but feel like someone's bullying him into silence."_

" _Or maybe he's overreacting. I mean, giving someone the silent treatment just because you're worried about him? Maybe he does have something to hide."_

" _Katie, I know you don't like Aiden, but you don't have to accuse him of things you have no proof of," Jason snapped. He's so defensive when someone says anything remotely negative about his boyfriend._

" _I never said I don't like him," I retorted. "I'm just saying maybe he's not good for you."_

" _Kat, look. I know this is just a little rough patch we have to get over together. I can't just throw away everything we've been through just so we could be with each other. I'm sure he'll feel better at the end of the day. If not I'll make it up to him."_

 _I shook my head. If Jay didn't get out of this true love fantasy of his, I'd make him for his own good. Soon. The only problem was how to do it._

" _Jay, I only want what's best for you. And what's best is letting go of baggage that'll drag you down."_

" _Look, you don't know our history. You don't understand what made us fall for each other, so please just leave it alone." Jay turned away from me. "Practice is starting soon, so you might want to get changed."_

My phone buzzes. Jason doesn't like it when we answer our phones during practice unless its an emergency. Well, just this once. I pick up my phone. I get a text.

 **Karma'sComing123: Hey, want to have some fun?**

 **KitKat: Eww, who are you?**

 **Karma'sComing123: Kaitlyn, please. I'm not trying to hit on you.**

 **KitKat: How do you know my name?**

 **Karma'sComing123: I've...been around. Look, there's a guy I've been trying to get rid of. You know Aiden Zhou?**

 **KitKat: Not personally, but yeah.**

 **Karma'sComing123: Well, let's just say I have a little vendetta against him. I want you to help me get some dirt on him.**

 **KitKat: What for?**

 **Karma'sComing123: He's a damn liar. He got that Jessica girl killed last year. How does he let a woman push him around like that?**

 **KitKat: Yikes. And here I thought he was just clingy. I knew he was no good for Jason!**

 **Karma'sComing123: You care a lot about Jason don't you?**

 **KitKat: He's my best friend. Or at least he was before he started dating that boy. Now it feels like Jason's trying to split himself between glee club and Aiden.**

 **Karma'sComing123: Appears we have a common enemy, don't we?**

 **KitKat: Look, I don't want to do anything that might end up hurting Jason.**

 **Karma'sComing123: Don't worry, he won't get hurt. Just help me get rid of Aiden.**

 **KitKat: You mean, like permanently?**

 **Karma'sComing123:Well, when you word it like that it sounds harsh, but...yeah.**

 **KitKat: Why, what did he do that made you hate him so much?**

 **Karma'sComing123:...not important.**

"Katie, you know the rules about using phones during practice," Jason says sternly.

"I know, I know! But I swear it was an emergency this time!" I say sweetly. Jay sighs, his shoulders heaving in frustration. Nick suddenly bursts into the room.

"Sorry I'm late," he wheezes.

"20 minutes late," Jay comments, clearly on edge. "Just...don't let it happen again unless you have an actual emergency. Same goes to you, Katie."

We get on with practice. I can tell Jason's heart isn't into the routine, with the way his movements seem more rehearsed than passionate. There's even pain in his voice when he sings. One way or another, I was gonna have to get Jay back to normal.

Nick and I approach Jason as he's packing up his bag to go home.

"Hey, Jason. We're heading out to the club tonight and we were wondering if you'd like to come with us," Nick offers.

"I better go home and make sure my boyfriend's alright, but thanks anyway," Jay replies.

"Jay, you need a night off. You're not his babysitter, he'll be fine," I insist, tugging at his arm. He looks at the two of us, then sighs.

"I...I guess it can't hurt. But just for one night," he relents.

Ace's POV

Aiden's been on his phone since we got to the park, his face creased with worry.

"Um, Aiden?" I wave my hands in front of his face. "Aiden!"

He barely responds, giving me an apathetic, "Mm-hmm…"

"I'm a little concerned about how inattentive you've been lately. You didn't raise your hand at all during Music Theory. You were...on your phone the whole time."

"Yeah…"

"Are you even listening now?"

"Mmm…"

"I'm losing my virginity to Rose on her 18th birthday."

Not even a reaction. He usually flushes at this kind of talk. I take the phone out of his hands. He glares up at me, and that's when I see the dark rings around his eyes.

"When's the last time you slept, Aiden?" I ask.

"N-none of your business," he stammers. "Just g-give me back my phone."

"I hardly think whatever's on your phone is so interesting that you completely lose focus-"

" _Ace!_ It's nothing, I swear...it's just...some video game I've been playing."

I look at him.

"..."

"It's a really distracting game."

"Dude, we've known each other for what? A little over a year? Something's up. I don't think I've even seen you and Jason together in a while."

He coughs, the covers it up with a forced grin.

"Well, you know how busy Jason tends to be. But you know, things are great!"

He says this a bit too loudly. He straightens up and tries to reach for his phone. I move it his out of his reach.

"Is someone threatening you?"

"Are you kidding? Of course not!"

"Then who the hell is Karma'sComing123?"

All the color drains out of his face.

"H...how d-did you…?"

"I had a hunch. Look, we can trace this back to whoever this is and put a stop to it-"

"No!"

"What?"

"Please, it's bad enough that Jason's suspicious. If anyone finds out...he could ruin everything for me. My application to Julliard, my friends, Jason, everything gone. So, for the love of God, you didn't see or hear a thing. Got it?"

"I really don't agree with how you're handling this."

"Please?"

"Aiden…fine. But something happens and we're stepping in."

"Fine. Can I have my phone back?"

With a sigh I toss him his phone and he goes straight back to texting.

Jason's POV

"Cheer up, Jason. You deserve to have a little fun for once," Katie tells me as we arrive at the flashy club. Thankfully all of us are 18 and old enough to enter. But something about this feels...sketchy.

"I only agreed to come with you guys. I never said I'd have fun," I grumble, jamming my hands into my pockets.

"When we're done tonight, you'll change your mind," Nick says. "Let's order some hot wings and pizza."

"I guess…" I sigh. Man, it really sucks when your SO is pissed off at you. I miss him already. Katie taps on the table with her manicured fingers.

"Jay," she says. "Take your mind off him for one night. He's fine."

"Hmm…" I huff. The waiter puts some gummy bears on the table. "Since when do they serve gummy bears at a club?"

"It's a new special," Nick explains, popping one in his mouth. Well, if he's eating them, I can assume they haven't been poisoned. I eat one. It tastes all weird and sweet at the same time. I wonder what's in them? Ah, who cares? I like the taste.

About 20 of those gummy bears later, I feel buzzed and a little dizzy.

"Duuuude," I slur. "What was in thossse gummy bears?"

"I think…*hic*...I heard someone say...that it was laced with champagne…" Nick says, rolling his head back.

"What?" I try to stand up, but I end up sitting back down due to my head spinning. "Isssnt that illegal?"

"Hey...if anyone tried to get in here wiff a fake ID...thass on them. Iss not like…*hic* anyone's gonna die from it," He hiccups. Katie's probably the only one still sober, nibbling on a slice of pizza.

"I love this song, let's go dance," she offers. I shake my head.

"No way...I think I might be drunk…*hic*...I think I should go home…" I say, rubbing my temples.

"They'd kill you if you showed up sloshed, Jason. I think you better stay here until you're sober," Katie says, pulling me and Nick onto the dance floor. The beat is fast, intense. I usually live for that kind of music but now, everything feels like I'm tripping. I sway backwards, and fall into Nick's arms.

"I got you," he says, his voice suspiciously normal.

"When did you get sssober?" I ask.

"I'm used to it. I trip for a little bit, then I can control it better," He explains. "Come on. Let's dance."

I try to protest but we're already in the thick of the crowd, bobbing and swaying. Nick's body is pressed unusually close to mine, but he blames it on the crowd. His breath tickles the hair on my neck. It is here that I come to the terrifying realization... _he was never drunk._ His movements, his breath, his clear eyes, its way too perfect for him to be even the slightest bit intoxicated. I wrench myself away from Nick's grasp.

"Take me home now!" I demand. Nick looks surprised, but quickly pulls me outside. Katie quickly follows soon after.

"What happened?" She asks.

"I want to go home," I snap. "Thish issn' fun!"

"Jason, it's just the gummies talking. You're fine," Katie sighs, rolling her eyes.

"You tricked me! Why did you wait until I had ingessted like 20 of those thingsss before telling me they were alcoholic?"

"Why were you eating so many of them?"

"I don't know, I just-" I choke out before dissolving into heaving sobs. Damn my drunkenness. "I...I miss him."

"Here we go again," Katie mutters.

"I'm worried that someones hurting him again and that we'd have to go through everything like we did lasst year all over again."

I sink against the wall, burying my face into my hands. Nick crouches down so we're eye level.

"Hey, it's gonna be ok," he says softly. I am strangely comforted by this. He helps me up to my feet. "We'll get you home."

Nick drops Katie off at her house first, saying nothing at all in the car.

"Why are you doing thish?" I ask. "Why are you being so nice to me?"

" 'Cause I'm a nice person?" He pulls up in front of Aiden's house and helps me out of the car. "Look, it's none of my business, but you shouldn't force yourself to stay with someone who makes you feel this much anguish."

"Isss not like that…"

"Jay...come on," he says, tilting my chin and looking into my eyes. "I could make you feel so much better…"

And suddenly, I feel his lips against mine. One hand cups my cheek, the other one pressed to the skin on my hips. I try pulling away but his grip is too strong and I'm too drunk. My mind is screaming _This is so wrong, I have a boyfriend_ , but my body is saying, _this feels so good, I haven't felt like this in weeks._ For just half a second, I melt into the kiss, thinking it was all just a hallucination. He runs his fingers through my hair...He smiles when he pulls away.

"I...have...a...b-boyfriend!" I splutter.

"Admit it, you liked the kiss," he teases, placing a strand of my hair behind my ear.

"Yeah, I totally love being kissed by my newest teammate while drunk," I reply sarcastically. He laughs.

"You're so beautiful, Jay," he chuckles, stroking my cheek. "This'll be our little secret. Aiden doesn't have to know...unless you want him to."

Of course he won't know. It would absolutely shatter him. I can't believe I just let Nick kiss me. And with our anniversary coming up, no less.

"Y-yeah...our secret," I say, stumbling through the door before blacking out.

(Sneak Peek of the Next Chapter)

Rose's POV

"So I met this girl this morning," Ava says. "She seemed nice."

"Look at you," I gush. "Just got back and already meeting someone new. Is she cute?"

Ava laughs bitterly.

"Trust me. I have no business being in a relationship right now," she says, patting her belly. I bet losing Uma has really taken a toll on her.

"Well, how was the doctor's visit?" I ask.

"Well, some bitch and her daughter made fun of me, so that happened. Oh, I ran into your mom while I was there. She's my doctor."

The plate full of food I was holding shatters on the ground. Ava gasps.

"Shit. That wasn't supposed to come out like that," she curses.

"My mom?" I say quietly. "She's...she's alive? And here?!"

"Rose...she didn't abandon you, she lost you on the bus and couldn't come back for you. She disappeared so she wouldn't get in trouble."

"My dad could've helped her...he would've understood it was a mistake...she didn't say anything for 13 years...Where can I find her?"

"At the clinic. I have another appointment next week. I can take you there. And Rose?"

"Yeah?"

"She says she's really sorry."


	4. Burn the Stage

**BlackCanary98: Sadly, this will not be the last you see of Patty in Ava's story arc, but that means you will see more of Nicole and her relationship with her brother Nick. Katie seems to think she knows what's best for Jason, even if it's not in his best interest. She'll continuously deny it, but she seriously dislikes Aiden. Aiden does appear to be falling into old habits of not telling people when something's wrong due to his past with Jessica. I agree, the two of them can be a bit...clueless at times, but the thing about dramatic irony is that what's obvious to the reader isn't always obvious to the characters. Plus, their busy school schedules would make it difficult for them to come together and put two and two together without some sort of interference.**

Rose's POV

One week later, we're sitting inside the waiting room of the clinic. Ava absentmindedly picks at the hem of her shirt that clings to her body. I have got to take her clothes shopping after this.

"Miss Edwards? The doctor will see you now," the nurse says. I follow Ava into the room, where a woman rearranges her papers.

"Nice to see you again Ava, and…"

She trails off when she looks up and sees me. My God, it IS her.

"Mom?"

"R-rosemary?"

We stand in silence for a while.

"So...uh, how are things?"

"They're...um...fine. Ok, Ava, let's get you checked out."

She checks the vitals of Ava and the babies while I stare at the wall. She's been here this whole time...why didn't she reach out before?

"They started moving last week," Ava says. "Feels like little goldfish swimming around in me."

"Well, that's normal for 5 months. Make sure to keep eating the food I recommended to you."

Ava nods and exits the door, leaving me with my mom.

"...all these years, not a single phone call…"

"Rose, I would if I could have...and I'm sorry I didn't watch you better."

"What am I supposed to do now? I thought you were never coming back…and now you're here, when I'm gonna graduate in June and go off to college."

"I made a mistake."

"What, having me?"

I couldn't stop the words from slipping out of my mouth, but I was so hurt, lost and confused that I didn't know what to think. My mom looks shocked.

"I admit it was a bit of a surprise to me, but I loved you from the minute I gave birth to you."

"I cried so much that day. I thought you didn't want me anymore."

"I know, and I'm so sorry for that."

"This is a lot to process, mom," I mutter awkwardly.

"Take your time. If you'd like we can get together and have a little brunch later on?" she offers eagerly. I shrug. What am I supposed to say?

"I guess that would be nice."

"Great. I'll see you there."

"I guess…"

I meet Ava outside of the parking lot near my motorcycle.

"How did it go?"

"Sooooo awkward. I mean, she's my mom and everything, but I haven't even seen her for longer than I've seen Roscoe."

"I guess it was too much to expect for a tearful happy reunion."

"I think I was too cold towards her."

"Trust me, I'd respond the same way if I were in your shoes. I know you definitely don't want to be in my shoes, though."

We laugh a little. It's nice to see Ava happy for once.

"Speaking of which, we need to go shopping!"

"Oh, God no."

"Yes, if you're going to make the most out of this situation, you're gonna look great doing it. It will be a huge middle finger to your attacker to see you enjoying yourself and not being knocked down."

"Ugh, fine."

Nicole's POV

I didn't go to school today. I highly doubt Ava went either. I don't blame her.

I'm browsing through some clothes at the mall when I hear a shriek followed by some giggling.

"It's so hideous, Rose!"

"It's a great look on you."

"So...horizontal stripes across my belly is a great look?"

"Just showing off that maternal glow!"

The two girls dissolve into giggles. I peek around the corner and see Ava and a black girl with pink hair trying on clothes. Ava was right. Those horizontal stripes are not a good look on her.

"Hey, Nicole," Ava greets when she sees me. "This is my best friend Rose. Rose, this is Nicole, the girl I was talking to you about."

This makes me blush a little that she even remembered my name.

"Y-you can call m-me Nicki...or Nicole. Whichever one you want to call me," I stammer. Rose smiles and shakes my hand.

"Nice to meet you, Nicole," she chirps. "What's your opinion of Ava's ensemble?"

I pretend to look Ava up and down, appraising every detail. I see her start to blush under my gaze. I feel my cheeks heating up as well. But I bet Ava's not in a place to date anyone right now. Oh well. A girl can dream.

"The outfit is ugly, but you look beautiful, Ava," I say. Ava blushes as red as her curly hair. Rose laughs and rolls her eyes.

"While I agree Ava looks stunning, I think the dress looks lovely," Rose says.

"Yeah, on you," Ava snickers. Rose pulls something else out.

"Wow...that one's perfect for her." I gasp. Ava goes into the changing room. She emerges minutes later. She's wearing a black one sleeve maternity dress that reaches her knees with black see through stockings with black pumps. Shoot, she can probably hear how fast my heart is beating at the sight of her. Please tell me I'm not crushing on this girl.

"You're right, Nicole! Let's get it!" Rose exclaims excitedly. She goes to the cash register to pay. Ava lingers for a bit, twiddling her thumbs.

"You really think I look beautiful?" She asks shyly. "You're not just saying so to make me feel better?"

"No...I mean it...I think you're really pretty," I whisper. Ava smiles wistfully.

"That's so sweet...you remind me of my ex-girlfriend."

"What happened?"

"She...she was shot...and I never saw her again...I miss her sometimes."

"I'm so sorry…"

"It's fine. I think Rose is done buying the clothes. Let's catch up to her before another store captures her eyes."

Aiden's POV

"You can't ignore me forever," Jason says from behind me as I put my books away in my locker. I say nothing and keep walking. I really hate doing this to Jay but...I can't put him in danger again because of something I did. He walks in front of me, forcing me to look at him.

"Hmph…" I grumble.

"Babe, my competition is tonight, so can we please put this little spat behind us for the time being?" he asks, holding one of my hands and looking at me with those electric blue eyes of his.

"Of course," I mutter under my breath. "I would absolutely hate if your performance was hindered because of me being mad at you."

"What?"

"Nothing. I know you'll do great," I say, giving him a tight smile.

"Awesome. Thanks, babe," he says, giving me a hug and a kiss on the cheek. I sigh and head to class.

 _He didn't even say anything about how our anniversary is tomorrow._

My phone continuously vibrates in class with texts from Karma'sComing123. I'd put my phone on silent but I'm worried he (or she) might be watching me. The incident with Nick hugging me is still being held over my head. They found out what exactly Jessica did to me. The gaslighting, the possessiveness, the strangling...They threatened to make me relive everything all over again if I didn't keep supplying them with secrets. I've told so many of my own that my life is an open book to any one who bothers to read my texts. I don't know how long I can endure this for.

"Mr. Zhou, are you listening?" I hear the teacher call out. Crap, must've zoned out again.

"Y-yes sir," I stammer.

"Ok then, tell me why the function x over x minus 3 is discontinuous at the value x=3?"

"I...uh…" I scan the board, trying to see where the class was. Some students start snickering. The teacher rolls his eyes.

"Sir, my friend here isn't feeling too hot so I'm just gonna take him to the nurse," Ace says quickly. He gets up and practically drags me outside.

"I wasn't on my phone this time, I swear!"

"Not important. Do you know why Rose and I rarely have any fights, much less about something serious?"

"No."

"Because we actually talk through our problems instead of walking away and waiting for things to blow over."

I sigh, "I guess I've been falling back into old habits again."

"You still think about her, don't you?" he asks. I look away, my face somber.

"Almost every night I dream that she came back and hurt everyone I cared about...then she'd always blame me for what happened. I thought after a few months I would get over it but I guess not."

"Does Jason know about any of this?"

"As far as he knows, my night terrors come only occasionally. I know it's stupid, but I'm scared of getting my heart broken again."

"It's completely normal for you to feel this way considering what you've been through, but if you and Jay could get some alone time to fix things before they get out of hand, that won't happen."

"Try doing that without one of his friends flanking him," I scoff. "I swear, Katie's attached to him almost all the time at school."

"Maybe you can find him at lunch. He's usually the only one in the auditorium during lunch. Talk to him then. And I mean really talk to him, not beating around the bush."

"But what if-"

"You keep thinking about what if and nothing's ever gonna change. Just go do it."

Swallowing the hard lump in my throat, I nod.

Jason's POV

"It was a one time thing, Nick. And I was drunk," I snap. He had cornered me in the changing room of the auditorium. I moved my things from the locker room because I didn't feel safe in there anymore. This was probably the 5th time he's got me alone.

"Being drunk doesn't change the fact that you enjoyed it," he says, pinning me to the wall with one hand. "Remember, it's our little secret."

"I. Have. A. Boyfriend. Stop putting your hands on me and trying to kiss me when the others aren't around," I growl, trying to twist away from him.

"Do you really want to spoil the performance, Jay?" He teases, wrapping one arm around my waist. "It would really hurt my confidence if you didn't play along, and you know confidence goes a long way when you're performing."

"Get away from me!" I push him back hard. At first, Nick is silent. Then he laughs, his laughter growing louder by the second. "What's so funny?"

"You fight like a girl," he taunts. Before I can lunge at him I feel something slam into my chest and make me keel over on the ground coughing and spluttering. Nick viciously kicks me in the stomach while I'm down. I try to roll over to my side. He presses on both of my bare shoulders, pinning me down. When he speaks again, his lips dangerously close to my ear, his voice his scarily 3 octaves lower. "Don't try to struggle, I was the champion wrestler back at Hearst. And another thing about me, Jason... _I don't take no for an answer._ "

"Hello?" I hear Aiden's voice outside the changing room. "Jay, is that you in there?"

His footsteps come dangerously would be awful if he caught us in this compromising position. Thankfully, Nick releases his grip on me and exits through another door just as Aiden enters.

"Hey. What's up?" I ask, trying to play off nearly being attacked.

"Look, I've been a huge jerk to you lately, and I'm really sorry for that."

I smile and take him into my arms. I feel so much better already.

"I told you you can't stay mad at me forever," I say, pressing my forehead against his.

"About those texts I've been getting...I think someone is stalking me."

 _I knew it._

"Do you know who it is?"

"No...I don't."

"Can I...can I see?"

Reluctantly, Aiden hands his phone over to me. Each message gets me more angry. This person's been harassing Aiden for over a week and blackmailing him. Details about his personal life are all over the place. There's even one where he thinks I've changed my mind about proposing to him, and the asshole has the nerve to agree with him. Aiden looks away from me.

"Babe, you know none if those things are true, right?" I ask, nudging his shoulder. "They're just trying to make you feel bad."

"I know, I should've told you earlier when it started. I guess old habits die hard," he says sadly. The physical wounds may have faded away but he still has the emotional scars. I remember how he told me that whenever he and Jessica had a disagreement, they'd just not talk to each other until she blows up at him to stop ignoring her. I guess he was waiting for the same to happen here.

"Sweetheart, you know I'd never intentionally hurt you," I tell him, caressing his cheek. I sigh, remembering the day I lashed out at him and almost lost him. I promised I'd never let anyone hurt him as much as I did.

"Jason...why are your shoulders bruised?"

"A teammate...did this to me," I say. "It was...Nick."

Aiden stiffens.

"What happened?"

"I was getting changed when he attacked me...I don't know what provoked him."

"Do...do you think he's the one sending me these texts?"

I wrap my arms around him and pull him into my lap, hissing, "Better not be. Then I'd have two reasons to kick his ass."

"You're kinda hot when you're mad," he says with a small smile. This makes me smile as well.

"You're kinda hot...all the time," I tell him. "There are so many things I want to do right now...but I have practice. I guess I'll have to wait until our anniversary tomorrow to surprise you."

"Can't wait, Jason," he says. He gives me a quick peck on the lips before leaving.

Katie's POV

Jason seems to be in a much better mood now. He has that pep in his step back. He's started humming to himself

"Glad to see you back to normal, Jay," I say, patting him on the back.

"Yeah, Aiden's not mad at me anymore, so that's great," he replies, beaming. Of course it was too good to be true. I was sure he and Nick would've hooked up after last week. "I'm totally ready for the competition tonight."

"Awesome. We're gonna kill it," I say, giving him a fist bump.

"We're gonna run the number from the top one more time, then go home and rest for tonight," Jason commands. "Everyone get in your positions! 5,6,7,8!"

Nick seems awfully quiet today. I go talk to him after practice.

"Hey, Nick," I say. "You excited for tonight's competition?"

He looks up at me and gives me a sad smile.

"Yeah, totally stoked for that," he replies weakly.

"Is something wrong?" I ask in concern.

"It's just...this thing that's been bugging be since we went out last week with Jason. You know he was, like, really drunk when I took him home? Well...I was helping Jason out of the car, when he kissed me suddenly. I wanted to push him off because I knew he had a boyfriend but I didn't want to accidentally hurt him. I tried to confront him about it, but he wants to act like it never happened."

"Aww, I'm sure Jason's just embarrassed he let his true feelings slip out," I console him.

"You...you really think he likes me?"

"Trust me. The only reason he's still holding out for Aiden is because he doesn't want to hurt his feelings," I assure him. "From the day I met him at our first glee club practice, he's always been this low-key hopeless romantic, dreaming that one day he'd find his Prince Charming or Princess as his soulmate. And now, he thinks he's found 'the one.' Give me a break."

Nick laughs a little.

"Well, allow me to defy the odds and fate herself," he chuckles, picking up his bag.

"I hope you do," I say. Nick turns away and I take out my phone.

 **KitKat: OK, I have something big! Turns out, Jay drunkenly kissed Nick last week and tried to deny it to spare Aiden's feelings**

 **Karma'sComing123:...Are you serious? Jason could easily blame this on being intoxicated. Do you have any photographical proof of this?**

 **KitKat: Well, no.**

 **Karma'sComing123: Never mind. It seems my other source was a bit more useful. I found a picture. Look, tomorrow is their anniversary. You're going to spread these all over the net tomorrow, and make sure Aiden sees it. I'll take care of the rest.**

 **KitKat: I got it...Why can't we do it tonight?**

 **Karma'sComing123: That glee competition is going to be all anyone talks about tonight. Besides, it feels sort of like poetic justice to do it tomorrow. Just don't let me down. I can't wait to see the look on that boy's pathetic face when it happens.**

Nick's POV

"Everyone has their uniforms, correct?" Jason asks all the members as we board the bus. Everyone says yes. "Do I need to do any last-minute readjusting?"

A chorus of no's answers back at him. He sighs in relief and slumps over his duffel bag in the front of the bus. He takes out his phone and starts texting, a small smile and blush growing on his freckled face. I narrow my eyes at this. I bet he was texting his stupid boyfriend as usual. My blood boils as I think about how cruelly Jason rejected me this afternoon. Can't he see that we're perfect for each other? One way or another, he will be mine. He doesn't have a choice.

A group of girls start randomly singing songs from High School Musical, much to Jason's chagrin.

"For fuck's sake, guys! Out of all the songs you could sing, you choose that one?" he groans, taking out a set of headphones to drown them out. The girls giggle apologetically and choose another song. This prompts some of the guys to try to outshine them by rapping obnoxiously.

"All the chickenheads...be quiet!" I hear one of the boys holler, arousing a wave of boisterous laughter. Katie sits next to me on the bus, clutching her dark blue duffel bag. I have to admit her company is quite nice when you get past her clear obsession with Jason's love life.

"This your first singing competition?" she inquires.

"In a team, yeah," I answer quietly. "I'm surprised Jason let me join with a competition this close."

"Well, we had a replacement for the graduated member, but the replacement got too busy and left. So we were pretty lucky when you showed up."

"Yes, lucky indeed," I say. "Does Jason always sit by himself when we travel?"

"For the most part, yeah. He likes to psych himself up so he's at 110% when we perform. He doesn't like to be disturbed, though."

"I see."

The rest of the bus ride is smooth, with only a few loud outbursts from the kids in the back.

We stop by a restaurant near the venue.

"Remember: lead vocalists no eating ice cream or any dairy products in excess. That would be, Allison, Marvel, Victoria, Nick, Katie and myself. Try to eat light because we're #3 in the queue and I don't want anyone to get sick."

"When do we change?" A freshman asks.

"As soon as you're done eating," he answers. "I'm gonna go check out the venue. You guys can start without me."

'Dude, do you even eat before performances?" Someone calls out. Jay freezes.

"The adrenaline usually gets me through," is all he says before disappearing.

"That boy gonna pass out one of these days from that," a guy says. "But what can we say? Jason's as stubborn as a mule. "

"What does he do by himself all the time?" I ask. Katie shrugs.

"Who knows. Jason isn't necessarily an open book with certain things."

"Aren't you curious?"

"Well, yeah?"

"Let's follow him."

"I don't know if that's such a good idea. He's kinda sensitive about people getting in his business, especially since he was outed as trans last year."

"But what if he's doing something he shouldn't be?"

"Why would he be?"

"He seemed very determined to win this competition."

"Well, that's because he wants some fancy ring to propose to-"

Katie tries to cover her mouth but the damage is done.

 _So it was true…_

"Well, if that's the case, then we should probably stop him before he does something to jeopardize the competition."

"I guess…" she says with some uncertainty. We grab our food to go and follow where Jason left. We stare in awe at the venue where the competition is supposed to take place. We see Jason sitting on the stage with his boyfriend while two adults that look like Aiden sit in the seats in front of them. The two of us get close enough for us to hear what they're saying.

"You're gonna do great, Jay," Aiden gushes, leaning his head on Jason's shoulder, to which the latter plants a kiss on his forehead and his cheeks.

"I know, I have my good luck charm with me," Jay chuckles, wrapping an arm around Aiden's waist. There's a weird muffled noise, and Jason flushes.

"Someone sounds hungry. You should go and eat something, Jason. I'm not going anywhere," Aiden assures him, squeezing his hand. Jay shakes his head.

"It's probably just nerves," Jay remarks casually, rubbing his stomach.

"Well, maybe you'd feel less nervous on a full stomach."

"Babe, that's just asking for me to end up puking on the stage."

"Not even a little snack?" Aiden asks, causing Jason to snicker. He ruffles Aiden's hair.

"I suppose a small fruit or something wouldn't hurt," he relents. Aiden takes an orange slice and hands it to him. "You, uh, want me to eat it now?"

Aiden nods expectantly.

" _I don't want to jump to conclusions,_ " Katie whispers to me. " _But I think Jason might be starving himself.._ "

" _Are you sure?_ " I whisper back. " _He looks pretty fit._ "

" _Yeah, but I don't think I've ever seen Jason eat anything at school or before competitions, always opting to go practice more. I think that might be why he fell during practice last week._ "

"Ok. one slice, that's all," Aiden tries to coax Jay. Jason crosses his arms defiantly.

"I'm not really hungry at the moment, A," Jay says weakly. Aiden frowns, but puts the orange slice back in his bag. "Look, I gotta get back with the other members. I'll see you after the show, K?"

"Of course," Aiden agrees. Jay kisses him on the mouth (albeit modestly since his parents were there) and heads to the changing room.

"I think we better get changed, too," I say, walking in after him.

"If only there was something to get rid of this damn curve on my hips," I hear him growl. I look up, and Jason is only dressed from the waist down, only his black binder covering his chest as he looks in a mirror. He frowns at who he sees in the mirror.

"I don't know why you see such imperfections in yourself, Jason," I say. He jumps and whirls around, narrowing his blue eyes at me. How cute. "Don't look at me like that, sweetheart. I'm only being honest with you."

"Don't talk to me," he snarls, pulling his skin-tight shirt on. "I have nothing to say to you."

Before I can retort, more of the guys start piling in. So I keep my mouth shut. For now.

10 minutes later, we're all sitting in the front rows, watching the competition. I admit it, they're good. We've got groups from Statton, Kepler, Athena, Apollo ...even some from Twin Branches. Hell, I bet the whole district is here.

"Jason, hi!" I hear a girl screech. A girl with pink hair rushes over to give Jason a hug. This another friend of his? Well, I have Katie pretty much under my thumb, so it can't be too hard to get to this girl too.

"Next up, from Lakeside High School, we have #StepUp!" the judge announces. The other members excitedly clamber up the step and take their positions.

The crowds chants of, "Let's go, step up!" make Jason beam with pure pride, as if he wasn't just in a pit of self-loathing before. The lights go out, and the music starts.

Jason: "You ain't going nowhere long as he's the driver. You can ride with him but he'll never be the same."

(Boys Chorus: Same, same, same, same)

The way his eyes gaze upon the audience sends people into a craze.

Me: "One look at ya tells me that you wanna be taken higher. See the problem is you wish he could make you feel the way I do"

At this, everyone gets into their respective groups and starts the step up, jump, and spin routine. Jay's really getting into it, rolling his hips and smiling at the audience. If only his attention weren't so focused on one particular member...

All: "Why waste time when you know I got it  
C'mon girl you know you want it. You know it's impossible to get what you're looking for from him he can't do it like me I'm goin' prove it

Jason: "I got a question can you help me out?"

Here, he breaks into the dance he's apparently been working on for months. It's a complicated set of steps that you'd have to be really good at rhythm to understand the moves. But Jason? He's like a machine, and the crowd absolutely loves it.

Jason: "How many people can do it like me?" Guys: "ZERO!"  
Me: "Keep it so cool like me?"

Girls: "ZERO!"  
Jason and Me: "Girl you know there ain't nobody nobody  
Jason: "Else that can make it so hot like me?"

Guys: "ZERO!"  
Me: "Take it to the top like me."

Girls: "ZERO!"  
All: "Girl you know there ain't nobody nobody... ZERO!"

Jason: "It ain't a good look without me in your corner. You can rock with him but he'll never fill my space."

Boys Chorus: Space, space space, space

I look directly at Jason for the next line.

Me: "One look at him tells me that he ain't the right one for you.I don't understand why you settle being here in second pla-a-a-ace."

All: "Why waste time when you know I got it  
C'mon girl you know you want it. You know it's impossible to get what you're looking for from him he can't do it like me I'm goin' prove it."

Jason: "I got a question can you help me out?"

He does the same dance again with more flair, arousing a louder response from the crowd.

Jason: "How many people can do it like me?" Guys: "ZERO!"  
Me: "Keep it so cool like me?"

Girls: "ZERO!"  
Jason and Me: "Girl you know there ain't nobody nobody  
Jason: "Else that can make it so hot like me?"

Guys: "ZERO!"  
Me: "Take it to the top like me."

Girls: "ZERO!"  
All: "Girl you know there ain't nobody nobody... ZERO!"

Me: "There's only one guy that can make you feel right that's me, myself and I. So why even try to make it work with him only you know I'm the original-nal-nal-nal-nal-nal.

Jason: "How many people can do it like me?" Guys: "ZERO!"  
Me: "Keep it so cool like me?"

Girls: "ZERO!"  
Jason and Me: "Girl you know there ain't nobody nobody."

We get into groups of 5 and launch on person in the air. Jason flips, spins a few times, and sticks the landing with a split.

Jason: "Else that can make it so hot like me?"

Guys: "ZERO!"  
Me: "Take it to the top like me."

Girls: "ZERO!"  
All: "Girl you know there ain't nobody nobody... ZERO!"

The group poses dramatically as the who area is surrounded by deafening applause and cheering.

Katie catches up with Jason after we head off the stage.

"That was epic, Jace! How are you feeling?"

"A little lightheaded, but I'll be fine," he replies, leaning on the wall for support.

We sit through the rest of the performances. Finally, the judge announces the results.

"In third place for 5 thousand dollars...is Athena Academy and Estrogen Overload! In second place for 15 thousand dollars...is Statton Academy and the Guild. In first place for 25 thousand dollars...is Lakeside High School with #StepUp!"

Around me, teammates are jumping up and squealing loudly. Jason smiles weakly but stays in his seat. Aiden runs over to him and pulls him in for a deep kiss. Jealousy runs through me. I knew that those should be my lips pressed to Jason's, and my hands caressing his hair. Jay grins at his boyfriend, blushing madly...right before he faints.

Everyone rushes to where he collapsed. People tell us to give him some room. Aiden manages to push through and kneel at Jay's side.

"Oh, Jay," he sighs. "I knew this would happen. I'll take him to a doctor if necessary."

With that, he hoists Jay up on his back and carries him towards his parents. I'm surprised he's even strong enough to lift him up. Whatever, by tomorrow, Aiden Zhou is going down. Hard.


	5. Give Your Heart a Break

**BlackCanary98: Jay doesn't want to tell Aiden about his being drunk or about Nick's constant unwanted advances because he fears that Aiden will think he's being unfaithful to him, especially after Jay's bout of jealousy in final chapters of Bitter Victory. I wouldn't blame Rose either for being wary about her mom. Trying to forge a relationship so late in Rose's childhood will prove to be difficult. And well, as for Jason, he's particularly insecure about his appearance since he was outed prematurely. He can't stand being a burden to anyone, so he tried to hide it for as long as possible, but ultimately pushed himself too hard during his performance.**

Aiden's POV

" _I'm fine,_ he says. _It's just nerves_ , he says," I grumble to myself, carrying Jay on my back. "I should've known something was up."

He feels so limp and lifeless in comparison to how alive and passionate he was on the stage. Why didn't I push him to eat something before he performed? It was so damn obvious!

 _He let go, his movements a bit shaky._

" _So...what's up?"_

" _I brought you your lunch again. And it looks like you might need it. You look a little pale."_

" _Aww...you care too much," he said. "I'm fine. Just working hard as usual."_

 _He always said that. And I believed him._

" _Ok, just be careful," I tell him, giving him a quick peck on the cheek before I leave._

 _Jay was shaking when he let go of me. Not from training, but from hunger._

 _He ran smack into me one time during practice. His face was red, and he was breathing heavily. He grabbed the wall for support._

" _Jason!" I gasped. "What happened?"_

" _I...I messed up and fell on my face. No biggie."_

" _Do you need to come home and rest? I asked. Jay looked like he was five seconds from dropping on the ground._

" _No, no. I need to practice," he waved me off. He always said that. And I believed him._

" _Well, in that case," I said. "We still going to the opera tonight?"_

 _Jason smiled._

" _I wouldn't miss it for the world," he said, hugging me. His heart was beating so fast, I thought it would leap out of his chest._

" _Don't forget about our date tonight," I said, slipping a ticket in Jay's pocket. This wouldn't be the first time he'd given me a rain check on our dates. I wanted to make this one special since it was my turn to plan the date._

" _I won't. I promise," Jason replied, brushing a kiss on my cheeks. "Just let me get in another hour of practice in and I'll meet you at home, K?"_

" _Jay, you look really pale. When's the last time you ate something today?"_

" _Don't worry about that, Aiden. Worry about making sure you look handsome for our date," Jay dodged the question, again._

" _But Jason-"_

" _Later, babe!" He said, walking off._

 _Then there was tonight. Jason snuck away from the other members just to see me. I was sitting with my parents waiting for the show to start, when a pair of hands covered my eyes._

" _Guess who?" he joked._

" _Hmm...is it Mozart?"_

" _No, much younger. And more handsome."_

 _I snorted at that. Sometimes Jay loved to stroke his own ego._

" _Oh, Louis Armstrong!"_

" _No, still more handsome than that."_

" _Well, there's my boyfriend, but I'm not sure he meets that criteria."_

 _Jay laughed, cupping both of my cheeks and kissing me on the forehead._

" _You sure about that, A?"_

 _I turned around, and there he was. Jay grabbed my hand and pulled me towards the empty stage._

" _We aren't going to start dancing, are we?" I asked, half-joking._

" _We won't unless you want to." Jason replied, giving me a coy smile. I blushed and looked down. We were_ so _not gonna dance in front of my parents. Not in a million years_

" _I'm good, thanks," I laughed. "You're gonna do great, Jay."_

 _I leaned my head on Jason's shoulder, to which he planted a kiss on my two cheeks._

" _I know, I have my good luck charm with me," Jay chuckled, wrapping an arm around my waist. There was a weird muffled noise coming from Jason, and he flushed._

" _Someone sounds hungry. You should go and eat something, Jason. I'm not going anywhere," I assured him, squeezing his hand. Jay shook his head._

" _It's probably just nerves," Jay remarked casually, rubbing his stomach. Hmph. Nerves or not, he was probably starving by now after practicing for so long._

" _Well, maybe you'd feel less nervous on a full stomach," I suggested. He gave me a bitter smile._

" _Babe, that's just asking for me to end up puking on the stage."_

" _Not even a little snack?" I pressed, causing Jason to snicker. He ruffled my hair._

" _I suppose a small fruit or something wouldn't hurt," he relented. I took an orange slice I packed in my bag before coming here and handed it to him. "You, uh, want me to eat it now?"_

 _I nodded. He gave me a weird look._

" _Ok. one slice, that's all," I tried to coax Jay. Jason crossed his arms defiantly._

" _I'm not really hungry at the moment, A," Jay said weakly. I frowned, but put the orange slice back in my bag. "Look, I gotta get back with the other members. I'll see you after the show, K?"_

 _He kissed me gently on the lips before leaving. I held my breath the whole time his performance went on, fearing that he would suddenly drop on the stage. I swear I saw him stumble at some point but he played it off._

 _When the judge announced that Jay's team had won, he was the only one who didn't get up and start cheering. I ran over to him and kissed him. His cheeks turned red...then white._

" _Jason, are you ok?"_

 _He grinned at me, opened his mouth to say something. I saw him sway uneasily before he suddenly dropped like a rock._

"Don't beat yourself up over this, Aiden," Rose says in the car next to me. She and Ava had caught a ride with my parents to the competition. "I'm sure Jason's gonna be fine. I've been through the same thing he has."

"I hope. What if he doesn't stop after he comes to? What if this gets worse and Jay winds up in the hospital? You know they'll call _his_ parents, not mine. Then, they might take him away from me."

Rose puts a hand on my shoulder.

"That won't happen. I won't let it," she declares. "Jason doesn't deserve to be stuck in a toxic home that won't let him be himself."

That's what I'm worried about. Jay's father made him leave town when he first transitioned so nobody would know about it. Now that everyone knows, his dad's been trying to get Jason back so he could force him to detransition. I know that would just kill him if his dad got his way. I've seen what he's capable of doing to us in the past. I shudder, thinking about the time he sent some of his friends to rough Jay up, which landed him in the hospital. I hated every moment I thought he was dead.

"I don't know what I'd do if something happens to Jason because of me," I say quietly. "I want to be there for him as much as he is for me."

"Jay already knows how much you love him, Aiden," she assures me. We pull up in front of Rose's house and drop her and Ava off. I stay quiet in the car for a while. Suddenly, I speak up.

"Mom? Dad? Do...do you think I'm a bad boyfriend?"

"Why would you think that, precious?"

"Well, Rose broke up with me, Jessica tried to kill me, and Jason might be slowly killing himself. I couldn't help the last two, and now...I don't think I can help Jason…"

My lip trembles a little, and I blink back tears.

"Aiden...you can't help those who don't want to be helped. You can talk to Jason, but eventually he'll have to come out of this on his own."

When we pull up in front of my house, I rush upstairs and put Jay on my bed. He's still out cold. I stay next to him, routinely checking his pulse and breathing to make sure he's still alive until I fall asleep too.

I suddenly wake up to a creaking sound. I quickly feel the space next to me, and Jason's not there! I bolt out of bed. I run down the hallways when I hear someone retching in the bathroom.

"J-jay?"

A hoarse cough. The toilet suddenly flushes, and a shaky voice replies, "Nggh...taken."

"Jason, can I come in?" I ask.

"I...I'd rather be alone right now…"

"If you're not feeling well, I can help you."

"I said I'm fine!" He snaps. Then he sighs, opening the door. I gasp as I take in his appearance. His brown hair is disheveled and all over the place. His blue eyes, normally shining, look dull and hollow. And don't get me started on how pale he looks.

"Oh, God, Jay…"

"I know, I look awful. Heh, look at me wallowing, when its our anniversary today," he says, stroking my cheek. Even his hands feel clammy and shaky. "I'll go get dressed, and we'll head out."

I peer past him into the bathroom. A tape measure is strewn on the ground, a capsule of what look like diet pills rests on the sink open, and the scale for measuring our weight is not in its usual place behind the toilet.

"Jason, do you remember passing out last night?"

"Pfft, yeah. Probably of excitement. We brought the house down. Go eat some breakfast and I'll wait for you outside."

"Don't you want to eat with me?"

"I already had breakfast, but thanks," he says quickly. I narrow my eyes at him.

"To me, it sounds like you just lost it. Please, Jason? Just a little food in your belly? Maybe a slice of toast? A banana?"

The mere mention of food makes Jason wince in pain as his stomach growls loudly. He sinks to one knee, leaning on the door frame.

"A...look, I'm not-"

"Jay. Look at me. You're starving."

"I am not!"

"You fainted last night because you hadn't eaten anything all day. They could've taken you to the hospital. Your dad would of shown up and-"

"Don't talk about my dad, please," he says, tears welling in his eyes. "I got carried away, that's all. You don't need to worry about me."

"Jay...I don't want to regret this, because I don't want to lose you."

Jay kisses me, holding me close to his chest.

"You won't."

"Then why don't you wanna eat?"

"Because it makes me feel awful, alright?! I get sick whenever I eat."

"An orange is not that heavy, Jason."

"Yeah, if you're not counting the calories in that combined with other things."

"Why the hell are you counting calories?"

Jay sighs, looking away from me.

"My...my dad called me sometime last month...he told me I wasn't fooling anyone, and to him, I'd always be a girl no matter what I did...he said my weight and curves were a dead giveaway. I thought working out along with practice would make it less obvious, but every time he'd start up with the same thing over and over, and I started to believe him," he mutters.

Jay's head is down, his shoulders slumped. I hold his chin and tilt it up towards me.

"Jason, your body is perfect for me."

"Babe, don't lie to me, it makes me feel worse."

"Sorry...but come on, you know I love you no matter what you look like."

"Why didn't you leave me behind when you had the chance?"

"Huh?"

"A, you and I both know what I'm talking about. That day you went back home to your parents. You could've let me stay at the shelter. Let's face it, I'm too much baggage for on person to handle."

" _Jason_ ," I say sternly. "Stop this right now. It's not you, and you know it. It's like you told me. They're trying to make you feel bad, and it's not true! So please, whatever you're doing to yourself, it's not worth losing you."

Jason has his back to me now, saying, "It's not that simple to just stop, Aiden. I've been doing this for a month. It...it's like routine. I eat an energy bar for breakfast, head to the gym before school starts, practice in the auditorium during lunch, pop a diet pill, practice with the rest of the glee club for 1 hour, practice after school until 5, eat another energy bar for dinner, head to the gym for half an hour, head home. Repeat. I can't just get rid of the muscle memory like that."

All those times he told me or my parents he had already eaten elsewhere...he was working himself to death. He'd smile at me and act like everything was alright... I can't let him do this to himself any longer for his own sake.

"Then let me help you, Jason. It's the least I can do after everything you've done for me," I insist, grabbing his hand. Jay looks at me for the longest time before slowly nodding. He gives me a small smirk.

"Fine. But only for you," he states firmly, running his thumb across my knuckles and pecking me on the nose. As usual, this makes me blush a faint red. "Now, come on! I don't want to miss your surprise!"

This makes me grin.

"A surprise?" I gasp, like I didn't already have a surprise planned for him too. "What is it?"

"You'll have to wait and find out," he teases, pulling me downstairs. On the way, he stumbles a little, but I hold him steady.

"I've got you," I assure him with a smile. Jason returns my smile. We settle down to eat breakfast. Well, _I_ settle down to eat breakfast. Jason fiddles with some strawberries between his fingers while I munch on toast.

"Are there circles around my eyes?" he asks suddenly.

"No, none that I can see. At least I know you're sleeping."

"Hey, I'm not Superman," he jokes. He continues playing with the strawberries.

"It's not gonna kill you, Jay."

"I know."

I don't want to say anything to possibly upset Jason, so I keep quiet. Finally, he takes very small bites out of the strawberries. Well, it's progress. I give him a small nod and continue eating. It's a small tip I got from Ace when his girlfriend was going through the same thing Jason is. He swallows hard, a slight grimace on his face. He clenches his fists. I touch his hand gently.

"You're fine...you're fine," I whisper. "Just gotta take little steps."

He releases his fists and sighs shakily. He nods.

Nick's POV

I can't stop thinking about what happened to Jason last night. I wonder if he's ok. Of course, when I see him in the hallways holding hands with his boyfriend, I have my answer.

Jay's getting some books from his locker when my hand gently closes it shut.

"Jason, I-"

"You don't get to say anything to me," he sneer, whirling around. That kinda hurts, but Jay doesn't look like he cares.

"Listen, I'm really sorry about what happened yesterday," I say. I reach out for his shoulder but he quickly jerks it away. Rude.

"Oh, you mean for putting your damn hands on me?" he snaps.

"Well, yes, but I was talking about you fainting last night. I had no idea you were suffering from an eating disorder."

"Who told you?!"

"Some of us suspected when you wouldn't eat during the show. I don't know why you're so insecure about your body.I wish I could help."

"You know how you can help me?"

"How?"

"By leaving me the hell alone."

"W-what?"

"I think you heard me loud and clear. Stay away from me and my boyfriend."

Oh, this poor, poor fool.

"Jace," I snicker. "You know that's not happening anytime soon."

"It's our anniversary today so the least you could do is show some fucking decency and let us be for a day."

"It's funny how you want to be all high and mighty about what's decent, even though I didn't hear you complaining when we kissed-"

"YOU KISSED ME!" he yells. Thankfully, the hallway is mostly empty. "AND I WAS DRUNK, FOR FUCK'S SAKE!"

"Hey, no one forced you to eat those gummies. Geez, someone's on her period," I scoff. This comment makes him flinch, but he walks away. One of these days Jason's gonna learn how rude it is to walk away when someone's talking to you. I grab him and slam his body against the lockers. I have to admit, it's kind of hot having him pressed up against the lockers, competely at my mercy. But why does he look so green?

"Let...me...go!" he struggles against my restraint. "I'm gonna be sick!"

"I'm already sick of you pretending that you don't have feelings for me. You wouldn't have let me kiss you if you didn't," I hiss.

"I don't...want this. Why can't you just take no for an answer?!"

"It's not that hard to say yes…"

Jay struggles to hold back a belch, groaning. Then more burps, each getting more wet and loud with succession, suddenly kept coming.

"Nggh…" His cheeks puff up. He puts one hand to his mouth and another over his stomach, which is now churing ominously loudly. Unfortunately, it all becomes horrifyingly clear what's going on.

"Dude, gross!" I snap, my shirt now dripping with a very chunky red substance.

"Tell them I won't be at practice," he mutters, taking the time to escape into the nurse's office for the rest of the hour.

Ace's POV

"Have you always noticed how crowded the hallways are after the bell rings?" Rose comments, holding my hand. "You never know when you might get whisked away here."

She giggles and I hold her steady.

"That won't happen on my watch," I say.

"You're squeezing my butt a little too tight, there, Ace."

"Huh? But I'm not-"

Rose screams.

"Then who's touching my ass?!"

We look around, but whoever did it must have fled by now.

"You ok?" I ask. Rose nods.

"I bet it was some random perv. I'll kick his ass if I see him do it again," she declares boldly, making me laugh.

"That's my little firecracker," I chuckle, stroking her cheek. "Come on, the others are waiting for us at Mega Burger.

Ava waves at us when we sit at the table. Jay rests his head on the table, Aiden gently stroking his hair.

"You doing alright, Jay?" I ask with concern. "That was a pretty big fall last night."

Jay musters up a tiny grin and says, "Yeah, I'm a bit sick. But I'll be fine. I have my knight in shining armor helping me out."

Aiden blushes.

"I'm just doing what you would've done for me," he says. "What do you want to eat?"

Jason frowns.

"I don't know...some...chicken nuggets or something...a small burger...I guess...if you don't mind sharing your food with me," Jay mutters. Aiden nods, ordering the classic fries cheeseburger and chicken nuggets.

"How about you, Ava?" Rose asks.

"I can't even eat most of anything on the menu," Ava groans. "But after eating nothing but fish, nuts and berries, I'm _so_ craving a double cheeseburger right now."

"I'll have a plate of wings," Wes says.

"Ditto," I say.

"...and I'll have a burger and an orange soda," Rose concludes. She goes up to the register to order.

"Feeling better, Jason?" Aiden asks.

"A little. I haven't forgot about the surprise I have for you," Jay says, nuzzling his boyfriend's cheek.

"Well, I have a surprise for you," Aiden replies, pulling a box out of his bag. "Open it."

He looks at Jay eagerly. Jay chuckles and opens it.

"Oh...my god…"

Jay pulls out a beautiful frame decorated with piano notes. There's a picture of Aiden and Jay together dressed in formal wear. Aiden has his arms around Jason's neck and is kissing him on the cheek. Jason has never looked so happy in that image. On the bottom is the caption, _I'm so happy to have this wonderful, handsome man in my life._ Jason smiles and kisses Aiden on the lips.

"That's not all," Aiden says, holding up a red sharp looking jacket. Jay smiles for a bit before it falters.

"Do you think it'll fit me?"

"Jay. I made this especially for you. It'll fit," Aiden assures him. "Here, try it on."

Jason reluctantly slips on the jacket. It fits like a glove.

"How do I look?" He asks shyly.

"Totally sexy," Aiden whispers, brushing his thumb across Jay's face. Jay turns completely red, something quite rare for Aiden to make him do. Rose comes back and hands everyone their food. We dig in. Well, most of us.

"You aren't eating, dude?" Ava points out. She didn't go to the competition last night so she doesn't know about Jason fainting.

Jay squirms in his seat.

"I'm just...heh, getting ready to chow down on this burger…"

Aiden could not have made Jay's portion any smaller. I get his body's probably not used to eating more because of his alleged disorder, but Aiden can't help him if he won't help himself.

Clearly feeling pressure on all ends, he picks up the burger and eats it painfully slowly.

"F-finished," he gags, putting his head back on the table. "Can I go now?"

"Ok, Jay. Just let the rest of finish eating," Aiden says, rubbing his back.

"Rose," I whisper into her ear. "We better get back and make sure everything's ready for Jason's surprise tonight."

She smiles and whispers back, "Aiden's gonna melt when he sees it."

"Listen guys, we gotta go to class now, but we'll see you later."

"I've gotta go to gym class too."

"The coach won't let you sit out?" Rose asks.

"His exact words were, 'If you've got time to open your legs you've got time to run with them.' He said I could lose the baby weight," Ava scoffs, much to Rose's anger.

"That's disgusting. He should be fired for that," Rose fumes. She's right. Hopefully we'll see to that in the future.

"Eh, I'll live. I think I'll get a note from the doctor when I hit six or seven months.

"But Ava, the babies. I don't want them or you getting hurt," Rose sighs.

"I'll kick anyone's ass before they even get near the twins," Ava asserts, holding her belly protectively.

Ava's POV

I'm so glad Nicole's in my gym class. I don't think I could bear changing in the locker room with _Patty_ in the same room.

"What's the point of hiding your belly from everyone else? It's pretty obvious some dude knocked you up," she taunts. Some of the girls laugh at this. I stretch my t-shirt as far as I can over my belly as much as I can. It doesn't work. The shirt goes just above my belly button. Crap. It's not like the shorts are any better.

"If you know where I've been you wouldn't be laughing," I snarl at them.

"Oh, we know," Patty laughs. "You've been under the sheets getting freaky with scumbag men. I can't believe people actually thought you were into girls."

I bite back an insult and walk out of the locker room, Nicole trailing behind me.

"I'm surprised you're so cool about this," Nicole comments softly. "If it were me, I'd be freaking out."

"Just gotta take it one day at a time," I say. "That's all that matters right now."

The coach blows his whistle at us.

"Edwards! Blake! Stop running your mouths and run over here for warm ups," he bellows.

"I dunno, Ava. You're carrying twins. I don't think it's safe," Nicole says.

"Well, the doctor didn't say anything about me not exersising. Plus, I'm only in the fifth month," I say, slowly jogging over to the rest of the class.

"About time, Edwards," the coach jokes maliciously. "I thought I was going to have to get someone to roll you out of the locker room."

This arouses a wave of laughter. Bastards. All of them.

"Ha, ha, very funny," I deadpan.

"Anyway, I want everyone to give me 25 laps around the gym," he announces. "And everyone has to be running. _Everyone_."

The others in the class give me a look. I glare back at them. The coach blows his whistle, and we take off. Nicole keeps up with me. Thankfully, we're not the slowest in the class. That dubious honor belongs to Patty and her band of misfits. I don't know why coach was worried about me being slow. These bitches aren't even pregnant and I could still run circles around I do.

Of course, Patty never hesitates to make some snide remark about my chest size or how big I'm getting. Jeez, is this how bad it was when Rose was a freshman at Berry?

"Damn, you look like you've got a melon strapped to your belly, Ava," she taunts. Finally, I've had enough. The next time I pass her, I stick out my foot and trip her. She reaches out and yanks at my shirt. Now, being already too tight in the first place, this motion makes my T-shirt rip right in half and fall off.

Good News: Patty's on the ground. Ha-ha.

Better News: She's bleeding. HA!

Bad News: Everyone in the gym can see my scarlet too small bra barely covering anything important. Boo.

Worse News: Nearly straight/bi guy and gay/bi girl is leering at me. Even the coach. Ew.

'

"Does this look like a damn strip club to you, Edwards?" he demands, storming up to me.

" _Patricia_ just ripped my shirt off!" I protest, covering my chest from everyone's eyes.

"Just go cover up before you end up pregnant again," he remarks cruelly. I turn and retreat into the girl's locker room. No sooner do I close the door, I sink to the ground crying.

"Ava?" I hear a soft voice go from behind me. She crouches down next to me. "Don't worry about those awful girls. And between you and me, that coach has got to go."

"I don't understand," I sniff. "I haven't done anything to that bitch and yet she targets me."

"Maybe she's just bitter. Where did you say you met her?" Nicole asks.

"At a pregnancy clinic. Why?"

Nicole's eyes go wide.

"I don't wanna jump to conclusions, but unless her mother was the one with the appointment, I think...that she might be the one pregnant and that's why she's lashing out at you."

"No way. With the way her mother acted, I highly doubt she'd let her date, much less sleep around."

"Hey, it might happen. And to think it would be a sense of poetic justice or karma or whatever."

I crack a small smile. I'm not sure I would wish this on my enemies, but it would be nice to see Patty get a taste of her own medicine. Oh well.

"I better go put on my spare shirt," I say. "But thanks for coming to cheer me up, Nicole."

Nicole blushes and looks away, twirling a strand of hair around her finger.

"I-it was nothing, Ava. A-anyone with an inkling of d-decency would've done the same."

"I guess you're the only decent person in this class," I laugh.

(Sneak Peek of the next Chapter)

Jason's POV

"Are we there yet?" Aiden asks, his face covered with a blindfold. I'm still feeling a little queasy since lunch, but I'm sure I can pull through for tonight.

"Not yet, baby," I coo, giving him a kiss on the cheek.

"Now?"

I laugh. I haven't seen him so excited since his 17th birthday last year. At least it's taken his mind off of what he saw this morning. I'm determined to make this anniversary special for him after he gave me this sweet jacket to wear and the lovely frame it came with. I'm taking him to the opera we missed a week ago to make it up to him, with a twist at the end. Rose and Ace offered to help out with the details. I hope he likes it.

We pull up in front of the smphony hall. I help Aiden out of the car and lead him to the front.

"I hear loud noises, Jay. Where are we?"

I remove the blind fold from his face.

"Surprise, babe," I say. He gasps.

"No way!" he exclaims. "You remembered the opera!"

He throws his arms around me, kissing me in elation.

"Of course I did," I say, cupping his face. "I felt so bad about missing our date last week, so I wanted to make it up to you."

"Aww, that's wonderful!" he gushes. "I wish I had done something more."

"Ah, you're probably the best gift I've ever had. Now enough with this mushy stuff. Let's go find our seats."

I pull Aiden inside the hall, watching him look around with awe. Hopefully, if I don't end up sick by the end of the night, I'll be able to keep his mind away from my health for a while.


	6. His LoveHer LoveOur Love

**BlackCanary98: Jay's dad is so adamant about Jay not being transgender that he's willing to crush his self-esteem to do it, even if it lands Jason in the hospital. I like having the role of the protector being switched in Jay and Aiden's relationship for once. The coach, is just a misogynistic ass, he's mostly irrelevant and just there to be a dick to Ava. Patty might be hiding some secrets of her own, though.**

Jason's POV

Aiden rests his head on my shoulder as we watch the opera together. We're seated away from the other audience members because getting these tickets was so last minute, but that's fine. We can still hear and see fine...plus we have a bit more privacy here. I squeeze his hand. My nausea seems to have lessened a little. I hope it stays that way, at least for the rest of the night.

"Still queasy, Jay?" Aiden asks quietly.

"I'm a little better, babe," I whisper back, pulling him close to me. His presence comforts me, feeling his soft black hair under my chin and his gentle breathing tickling my skin.

"Absolutely stunning," he murmurs.

"I know, this performance is amazing."

"Actually," he says, looking me in the eyes and closing the space between us. "I was talking about you."

He gingerly presses his lips to mine in the darkness of the auditorium. Soon, we've forgotten the surroundings and melt into each other's embrace as the kiss becomes heated. His fingers dig into my shoulder blades as he straddles my lap. My hands grasp his hips tight as he runs his hands through my hair. A sigh escapes me as he trails further down on my neck.

"A-aiden…" I manage to get out in the few seconds we stop for air.

"I was terrified when you fainted, Jason. I don't know what I'd do if something happened to you," he says, grazing my lips. He goes silent as he continues kissing and caressing me. I start slowly unbuttoning his shirt, slipping his dress shirt off.

"You look so good right now…"

That's when I feel a twinge in my stomach. Fuck, please don't growl right now, _please_. Of course, my traitorous gut does just that.

"Uh...I...um," I start to stutter as I turn inexplicably red.

"We can go home if you're not feeling well," he says with concern. "I wouldn't want to make you feel any worse."

"N-no, it's fine. I think I'm just, uh, hungry. Yeah, that's it."

Aiden looks at me suspiciously.

"Are you sure?"

"Mmm-hmm."

I feel another twinge. I trail passionate kisses down Aiden's neck and shoulders, nipping him and making him moan loud enough to mask the noise. He blushes furiously. Thankfully, no one turns around and spots us.

"Are you trying to get us caught?" he hisses.

"Me? I'm not the one moaning," I say innocently. This makes him blush even more, hiding his face in my chest.

"W-well, I'm not the one b-biting on your neck, Jason," He stammers. "I think the opera's a bit too public for this. Let's just wait until afterwards."

He smiles awkwardly before getting back into his seat, putting his shirt back on. We watch the rest of the opera peacefully, with one of us occasionally squeezing the other's hand.

Walking out of the symphony hall, Aiden can barely contain his grin.

"I take it you had fun?" I ask, kissing his cheek.

"Yeah, it was amazing." He looks at me lovingly.

"Well, the fun's not over yet."

"It isn't?"

"Nope. Come on," I say, pulling his hand. Aiden chuckles as I lead the way. We arrive in front of a museum.

"Ooh, how exciting!" he says. We head inside. "Are we going to see the-"

"-15th to 19th century musicians exhibit? Yes we are, A."

We practically run around until we find the exhibit, only slowing down when a guard yells at the two of us. We look around, oohing and ahhing at everything in the exhibit. When we get to the end, Aiden gives me a mischievous smile.

"What's with the look on your face, sweetie?"

"I kinda want to make out right now," he says. "Missing you surrounded by the artifacts of the most renowned musicians would be so hot."

"The rules are not to touch the masterpieces," I say, my body pressing against his. His cheeks turn a faint pink. "Good thing I don't follow the rules, huh?"

"Well, someone's got to pin the works of art to the wall."

"Looks like I'm the guy to do it."

I press my lips gently to his, my tongue gently but firmly asking entrance. He starts to melt from this exchange, the only indicator being the small sigh he releases. I hold him up by his waist, making him stand on the tips of his toes. Blue eyes to black eyes. Tanned skin against pale skin. Each fluttery kiss on my skin feeling like an explosion of passion. Each steamy kiss sends shivers throughout my body. The rest of the world fades away, knowing that I have him. My Aiden in my arms. He makes me feel at peace, secure, even. I kiss him until he's all that's on my mind.

We finally pull away, breathless and smiling.

"Jason...I love you so much…so, so much," Aiden says, wrapping his arms around me in a tight hug. "I'm kinda hungry though. Shall we go to dinner?"

"Thought you'd never ask. Come on," I say, laughing as the two of us run again from the museum, with the guard threatening to have us banned. We don't stop until we reach a restaurant Rose recommended.

"Garden Buffet, huh?" he teases. I flush.

"I know it's not the fanciest place, but-"

Aiden pulls me into another kiss, effectively shutting me up.

"I don't care. I love it. I love everything you do," he says firmly. "Let's go inside."

"Table for 2," I say, my arm around Aiden's waist. The waitress smiles at us and leads us to a secluded area in the restaurant.

"Ooh, private," Aiden whispers barely centimeters from my ear.

"We won't even get to eat if you keep this up," I whisper back, my lips just brushing against his skin and one hand around the nape of his neck. I feel his cheeks heat up from the contact. Aiden sits across from me at the small table, placing our stuff down before we head to the buffet.

"Wow...uh...you must be really hungry, Jay," he comments, glancing at my plate. I mentally facepalm. I must have been thinking about how hungry I was.

"Uh...yep. Can't wait to eat it all," I chuckle nervously, picking up my fork. Gulp by gulp I manage to choke down everything on my plate. It feels like atomic bombs of food going down into my belly. I don't even notice I've eaten everything until I hear the scraping of the plate. Aiden, his plate half full, stares at me with his eyes wide open.

"Jace? Are you sure you're feeling ok?" He asks again. To be honest, I feel ready to explode. I bet I look even more bloated under my shirt. Ugh, what was I thinking? This is the first time in a month where I've had a full stomach. I don't like the feeling. I've probably gained a few just by eating here. I poke the flesh on my abdomen. I make a mental note to check my weight and measurements as soon as we get home.

"Jason?" Aiden waves his hand in front of my face.

"I'm fine," I mutter. "I probably just ate a little too fast."

"Well, at least you're eating," Aiden says, kissing my cheek.

"Y-yeah."

Aiden smiles softly. The rest of our meal is relatively uneventful. At least seeing Aiden's smile puts my sickness at ease for a while.

"So...uh, you heard anything from Karma'sComing123?"

Aiden frowns.

"Yeah...I think he or she is planning something big. I thought I'd heard the last of them after I told you, but I guess I was wrong. I don't want what we have to end," he says, reaching out for my hand.

"Me neither," I assert. "And if I have anything to say about it, it won't happen."

"I do wonder, how id this person even get my phone number? The only people that have it are you, Rose and Ace...did anyone else get access to your phone?"

"Well aside from Ni-" I gasp. It better not be him causing my baby so much pain.

"You don't think it could be him doing this to us?"

"I mean, this isn't the first time he's tried to drive a wedge between us."

"What do you mean?"

I bite my lip, not sure if I wanted to tell Aiden about Nick trying to force himself on me.

"The night after someone sabotaged our date, I was really upset. Nick and Katie invited me out to go to a club."

Aiden inhales sharply. I know he doesn't like Katie as much as she doesn't like him.

"They had these gummy bears there. I figured they were small, and I could always burn off the extra calories. Turns out, the gummies are spiked with champagne and I'm the only one who gets drunk because of it," I continue. "When I realized this, I demanded they take me home. Nick dropped Katie off first, then me. He got me out of the car, and he started talking about how I deserve someone better, blah, blah, blah...and then...he...he kissed me. I couldn't push him off of me. He started harassing me at school, holding the kiss over my head. He tried to go further with me twice. The first time he cornered me in the dressing room of the auditorium, he had me pinned on the ground. I don't even want to know what he would've done if you hadn't walked in when you did."

"Oh my God, Jason!" he gasps squeezing my hands.

"Then the second time...was this morning. I tried to blow him off, that just made him angry. He threw me against the lockers. I think he would've done something horrible to me if I, heh, hadn't thrown up on him."

"Aww, is your tummy still feeling queasy?" he asks.

"I'll be fine, babe." I lie. Reliving this experience has made me feel even worse, but I don't want to worry him any more. "Ready to go home?"

"Yeah, I'll get this to go and I'll meet you outside, ok Jace?" he says, giving me a quick peck on the cheek. I pay for our meal and wait outside. Aiden catches up to me, looping his arm with mine as we walk home together. "Jason, tonight was amazing."

" _You're_ amazing," I say, giving him a little kiss on the nose.

"I know," he says teasingly. "I just wanted to hear you say it."

I give him a playful shove as we enter the house. Aiden goes inside his room to change. I pick up my phone and notice there are several missed calls.

 **Missed Call (8): Dr. Asshat Parker**

What the hell could my dad want now? I decide to give him a piece of my mind.

"You're an ungrateful brat, you know that, Jayda?" he snarls as soon as he picks up.

"Nice to talk to you, Dad," I reply sarcastically. "Listen, I'm 18 now. I can do whatever the hell I want, and you can't do a damn thing about it."

"This is all because of that chi-"

"Stop insulting my boyfriend. In a few months even, he'll be my fiance."

A beat.

"You wouldn't dare. I won't allow it."

"I'm legal, I can marry him if I want to. Now leave me alone. I don't want anymore missed calls from you anymore."

"Oh, Jayda. You want to be a faggot so damn badly."

"A w-what?"

"You heard me. You wanted to be one of the guys, you even fell in love with one," he says maliciously. "But I see right through you, fatass.I heard it was your anniversary today. I bet you ate like a filthy pig."

I lift up my shirt, poking the flesh. My finger sinks in a little.

 _Soooo fat._

"I...uh...you don't know that!" I splutter.

"Maybe not, but I'm a doctor, remember? You were born a girl, you are a girl, and you'll die a girl. It's biology."

"I'll get the freaking surgery, and then we'll see if it's basic biology," I snap. I'm breathing hard. Who was I kidding. I only got lucky my team won so I could by the ring I stashed away for Aiden. But all the prize money couldn't pay for my surgery, not even top surgery. At least I wouldn't have to wear this damn binder 24/7.

 _He's right...biologically, I'm still a fat girl._

I grab my stomach. I shudder at the amount I'm able to hold in one hand.

"You still there, cuntboy?" his voice echoes in my ears. Out of all the transphobic abuse I got from people over the years, my dad was the worst, especially after I was outed

"F-fuck off!" I exclaim, hanging up. Now I remember why I don't call him often. I've got to get rid of this food before it digests! My head is spinning. I begin to dry heave. I open up the toilet lid. I'm glad I don't have to do this often.

But before I can stick my fingers down my throat, someone grabs me and drags me away into the bedroom.

"Jason!" I hear Aiden's pained voice from behind me. "Jason, please stop!"

"Let me go!"

"Jason, please! Don't do this!"

"Leave me alone," I growl. I don't want to hurt him, but he won't let go of me.

"This isn't healthy, Jay. Eating food is natural!"

"You don't understand. You'll never understand," I say. I choke back a sob.

Aiden wraps his arms around me protectively.

"I don't understand what, Jay?" He asks, stroking my hair.

"I just wish I'd been born a boy. Maybe then Dad would accept me...and us," I sniffle. "It hate having to go through all this just so I could feel comfortable in my own skin.I am sick and tired of people giving me shit because of it!"

He rubs my back soothingly as I cry softly. He rocks me in his arms, waiting for me to quiet down.

"Jace, it's gonna be ok," he says. He kisses my forehead. "Like you always tell me, we'll get through this. I promise."

"Aiden…you know people...like me, they don't live very long past adulthood. I know some trans people find a loving community that would never try to harm them...but here, with my dad out there...I'm surprised I survived that day his men attacked me."

Aiden holds me tight.

"Don't say that. I'm glad you're alive. And I want you to stay that way," he says.

"But I-"

"Come on, let's head to bed. Do you want to be the little spoon this time?"

"I'd rather be the big spoon, if you don't mind," I say. He smiles and kisses me sweetly. He gets under the covers with me. We fit together like a puzzle.

"Jason?"

"Yeah?"

"I love you."

"...I know."

Nicole's POV

"Penny for your thoughts, Ava?" I ask she jumps a little from surprise.

"I...uh...I was just thinking about random stuff," she says.

"Are you still thinking about what happened on Friday?" I asks with a pout. "Patty didn't even face any consequence for what she did."

My blood boils a little, saying her name. I know Ava wants so very badly to kick her ass, but she doesn't want to risk putting the twins in danger. Her due date is supposed to be the week after prom. She rubs her belly. She's 26 weeks now. 14 weeks to go.

"I just hope she doesn't try anything after I tripped her."

"Well, how are you feeling?"

"Bloated. Swollen. Gassy. Irritable. Did I mention swollen?"

"Poor thing," I wince in sympathy, patting her shoulder.

"No, the worst part is getting these weird cravings out of nowhere. I hate pickles. But now, I want a whole bunch of then smothered with chocolate and dipped with peanut butter. And with whipped cream on top! Ugh, my stomach's growling just thinking of it."

"Eww!" I laugh. Ava laughs with me. "Have you eaten one?"

"Several times!" Soon we're both laughing uproariously as we enter the lunch room. A few kids look a little longer at Ava than they should, but eventually turn away. We wave to Rose and her friends and sit at our table.

I'm talking to Ava when I feel a manicured hand grab my shoulder. Ouch.

"We're having a cheerleaders meeting, Nicki," Patty says from behind me. She's the new cheerleading captain after the old one graduated. Ava told me about how she was supposed to be the captain before shit went down. What exactly happened, she doesn't want to talk about it.

"It, uh, wasn't announced this morning," I say. "Besides, I'm talking to my friend right now."

"I don't care. When I say there's a meeting, you take your worthless carcass to that meeting."

"You sound like a bitch I would know," Ava snaps. I know she's referring to Kara Sinclair. The good thing about leaving Hearst was not having to deal with her anymore. Or so I thought. It seems I've left one frying pan for another.

"Am I hearing things?" Patty says. "Or do I just hear the opinion of a pregnant fallen star. It's just so convenient how when you left the squad there was a spot for me to fill in!"

She glares at me. I mouth an apology to Ava and slink over to the cheerleaders table. Patty taps her fingernails on the table.

"Lakeside Leopards, this meeting will now come to order," she says. "First order of business. Some of you aren't wearing your hair according to the guidelines. Guys, your hair needs to be slicked back or cut completely. We don't need carbon copies of Wes flipping around."

"No one ever follows the guidelines, sweetheart" a dark-skinned senior scoffs. He puts his feet on the table. "I don't know what Hermione was thinking when she made you the next captain."

" _Sweetheart_ , that hairstyle is out of style," Patty snaps.

"Keep that up and my pom poms won't be the only thing that gets tossed. My name is _Shane_."

"Ugh, whatever. Next. Girls. Have any of you even bothered using the shampoo I told you to use?"

"You don't get to police our hygiene habits," Mia, the co-captain retorts. "As long as everyone showers and brushes their teeth, they'll be fine."

Patty sucks her teeth.

"Damn, no wonder everyone at Hearst hated you, Mia," she says. Mia recoils a little from this, but stands her ground.

"Well, this isn't the time to critizize how everyone looks," Mia says. "We need to talk about our lack of funding. Unfortunately, our equipment is out of date. I can't stand the sound of feedback when I'm trying to flip!"

"Well, maybe we'd have more money if the glee club wasn't so stingy with their winnings," Patty grumbles. "All they do anyway is the same thing we do, just with singing. Their leader always splits up their prize evenly among the other members. Aren't they supposed to bring it to the treasury?"

The other cheerleaders murmer amongst themselves.

"Frankly, I don't care what the glee club does. It's not their fault we don't have enough money," I say quietly. Patty turns and glares at me.

"And just what do you mean by that, Nicki?" she asks in an eerily calm voice.

"I-I mean, they get their money from bake s-sales and f-fundrasiers and stuff like that."

"Yeah, on our turf!" she yells at me. "I can't believe the senior President and VP allow this. Maybe they shouldn't have been reinstated."

"Don't talk about Rose and Ace like that!" Mia interrupts. "This is why...this is why they hate us…"

Her shoulders slump a little. This is the Rose I met last week? She doesn't seem like the kind of person.

"Who cares? They're on student council, and their job is to serve the people. I'm going to talk to them after lunch. They probably sneak off to the President's hangout to make out with each other," Patty huffs.

"Well, uh, can I go back to my friend now?" I ask timidly. Patty rolls her eyes.

"Just one thing," she says. Then she drops her tone to a whisper, grabbing my arm. " _I know you have a crush on that pregnant slut, Nicole_."

The blood drains from my face.

" _I have no idea what you're talking about_ ," I whisper back. "Ava and I are just friends."

'I see the way you look at her, the way you defended her after her shirt 'ripped off' in gym class last week. I hope you aren't going to get too attached to her, and put her in front of your cheerleading duties. Trust me, she'll only drag you down in the end."

"You don't know a thing about what she's going through, so no one has any right to judge her."

I shake my head and walk back over to Ava's table. She barely looks up when I sit down.

"Hi…"

"Hey."

"Well, we've got a few minutes left of lunch, maybe we could-"

"I have to use the bathroom," Ava says abruptly, getting up and packing her things away.

"Do you want me to come with you?"

"No. But I'm sure Patty can keep you company. The two of you looked _real_ close at the table in the back."

"Ava, it's not like that!"

"Just...leave me alone right now," she says, walking away.

Rose's POV

"So, I went to brunch with my mom," I say, sitting in Ace's lap.

"How did it go?" he asks.

"It went...alright, I guess. It's a start. I just can't get used to the fact that my mom is _back home_. I haven't even told my dad or Roscoe yet. I don't know, is it too late to have her back in my life again? I'm almost 18 and about to go to college."

"Rosie, I can't tell you how to live your life. My advice would just be to let your heart speak for you. If you want to let your mom back in your life, that's fine. If you don't, that's fine too." he says, running his hands through my hair. I smile gratefully at my boyfriend. No wonder he's been president for years. He always knew what to say. I loved him for that, even when he was against me. Speaking of which…

"Ace?"

"Yeah?"

"Do you remember when we spontaneously got together while the whole thing with council was going down?"

A grin creeps on his face, followed by a blush.

"I thought you'd forgotten about that," he chuckles. "You were so mad when it happened…"

 _I'm pacing back and forth, waiting for Nishan to find anything that could take Ace down and save my school. The lives of me and my friends depended on it. I heard a knock at the door._

" _I'm not expecting anybody," I muttered to myself. "Especially not-"_

 _I nearly dropped my phone when I saw Ace in front of my door._

" _What are you doing here?" I demanded. He brushed past me without saying a word and sat at my table. Rude. "Um, hello? Did you miss the part in manners school where you actually say hello or something when you unexpectedly drop by someone's house?"_

 _He motioned for me to sit. I remained standing out of defiance. He narrowed his eyes, but shrugged._

" _You know, you can be a real pain in the ass sometimes, Rose," he said._

" _I pride myself on it," I sneered._

" _Look, I didn't come here to sling insults. Someone's been looking through files._ My _files," he began._

" _What does this have to do with me?" I snapped._

" _Call off your dog, Rose," He ordered. "All it takes is a little call to an associate of mine to find out that it's your little friend Nishan behind it."_

" _And if I don't?" I challenged. I swore I saw a flame or spark in his eyes. But it quickly vanished as his eyes darkened with anger._

" _Oh, I don't know. Get him blacklisted from all the top colleges, practically ruin his career in science for the rest of his life, the possibilities are endless," he said, rolling each word off his tongue. I bet he's bluffing. Not even Ace had that kind of power._

" _Go ahead and ruin his life! I don't care," I said smugly. I paled when I heard a recording of my voice saying the exact same thing._

" _I'm sure Nishan would love to hear you say that, Rose," he taunted me. "I'll just send this to Nishan, real quick before I-"_

" _Ok, ok!" I relented. "I'll tell him to stop."_

 _Ace watched me as I texted Nishan._

 _ **RadiantRose: Nish, you can stop looking through Ace's files. We'll find another way.**_

 _Ace chuckled after I sent it._

" _I can't believe you still think you can win, Rosemary. Your classmates are aligned with me, the Council pretty much hates you, and it's only a matter of time before Lakeside High gets shut down. But I applaud the efforts nonetheless."_

 _I was fuming. Here was this entitled bastard thinking my school screwed him over, taunting me about the potential demise of the school I worked so hard to build. Without thinking, I lunged at him and tackled him. He certainly wasn't expecting that!_

" _Hrraah!" I roared. His cell phone launched out of his hand and landed on the couch. Ace tried to reach for it, but I held him down. "Oh, no. You're not getting away this time."_

" _This is only making you look bad Rose," he warned, struggling to escape._

" _Trust me, you'll look worse when I'm done," I growled. He pushed me off of him and tries to grab his phone a second time. I grab it and launch it down the hallway._

" _You're not making this easy are you?"_

" _Nope. Suffer."_

" _You damn well knew I deserved that internship!"_

" _No, you didn't, everyone had a chance to win. You just didn't win, get over it."_

 _At this point, we're basically rolling around on the carpet, both of us trying to gain dominance with our faces red and flushed. I knew I would lose energy if I kept fighting him. I had to distract him._

 _How?_

 _I kissed him._

 _It was so wild, so sudden, so unexpected. Ace blinked, but eventually gave into the kiss. He cupped my cheeks, my pink hair falling on his hands. Soon, his blue jacket slipped off, so did my sweater. Ace made no effort to hide how he felt about the situation. It was a moment of heat and passion clashing together. Our tongues danced. How scandalous! The so-called innocent Rose on the carpet making out with her rival! Clutching pearls! When I pull away, my lips feel cold, already missing the sweet feel of his mouth pressed against mine._

" _That was...interesting," Ace said. He cleared his throat, pulling on his jacket. "But you'll have to do better than a kiss to save your precious school."_

 _In my daze, I'd completely forgotten about the phone. He calmly picked it up and strolled out, but not before winking at me. This made me feel all sorts of weird inside._

" _Damn," I thought. "Why are the evil ones so attractive?"_

"Man, I thought you were going to kill me," Ace laughs. "I wished I'd known earlier that you aren't as innocent as you look."

"Well, we can always reenact it…" I suggest.

"You had me at reenact," he says. He leans in to kiss me and slip off his jacket, when the door slams open, and a swarm of cheerleaders surround us.

"Uh, is there a problem?" I ask, slightly annoyed at the interruption. I feel Ace grow colder, so unlike the affectionate side I usually saw of him.

"We're kinda busy," Ace says curtly.

"I'm sure you were. Look, the glee club is using revenue that should be used for the cheerleading squad."

Ace blinks, looks at me, and tries to hold back a laugh.

"I mean, they don't usually take money from the treasary. They hold fundraisers-"

That's what I'm talking about!" the girl snaps. "People are always going to their shows, while we can barely fill half the stands at games!"

"Who's fault is that?" I mutter under my breath.

"And...what do you want us to do?" Ace asks.

"Hello, you're the prez and vp! Make them sell somewhere else. The school has always been cheerleader turf."

"Turf?" I accidentally snort. The girl glares at me. "Look the glee club can sell anywhere they want, considering it's not our money their using for their shows. We've already allocated money equally to all the extracurriculars at this school, so I'm not sure why you need more in the first place."

"Well, someone's got to keep the team in shape. And the two of you need to do your jobs," she sneers. Ace's eyes narrow, but I hold his hand under the table.

"Girl, if you saw the mountain of work we do on a daily basis just to keep the school running, you wouldn't have room to complain. Now, unless you have something pressing to tell us, we have a meeting in a few minutes."


	7. Bound by Secrecy

**BlackCanary98: Jason's got a long way to go on the way to recovery. His dad just doesn't care for his son's mental health as long as he gets to force Jason into being something he's not. Not all the cheerleaders feel they are entitled to the treasury money. And Mia is actually co captain with Patty. The role was supposed to go to Ava once she became a senior had the events of Fall From Grace and the subsequent stories never happened. So yeah, she's stuck up, but she's the only option.**

Ace's POV

The cheerleaders huff and storm out of my office. I resist the urge to roll my eyes. I turn my attention back to Rose, tilting her chin up towards me.

"Now, where were we?" I say, smiling at her. She doesn't return my smile, sighing heavily.

"I'm...not really in the mood right now, Ace," she says sadly.

"What's wrong?" I ask.

"I'm worried about what will happen when we graduate. Who's gonna make sure the school's still gonna be here?" She asks. "The way things are, I wouldn't be surprised if the school burned down next year."

"Oh, Rosie. You do everything you can for the school. If they can't appreciate that, then that's their problem."

"It's not just that, Ace. I've heard rumors of an uprising emerging. People think we've gotten too self absorbed since being reinstated."

" _Self absorbed_?" I snort. "I guess the pot is calling the kettle black here, huh, Rose?"

"I dunno, Ace. I just feel, despite everything…I still have an obligation to keep this place a safe haven for kids who just wanna be different."

"And look where that got us. Your classmates blame and ostracize you when something goes wrong and yet are the same people who come beg you for help with stupid things. Face it, they never respected you."

"Well then, what should I do?" she asks.

"Well, for starters, don't always give the people what they want, then they'll get greedy and take advantage of you. Make them work for it."

"Isn't that kinda the opposite of what the council is supposed to be doing?"

"The point of the council is to make sure student facilities and programs run smoothly, not to jump in whenever the anime club needs a new comic book to watch or when some knock of Tony Hawk needs a new skateboard and especially not for setting up classmates for prom! They're all ungrateful and you know it, Rose."

"Ace!" Rose gasps, pointing to where my elbow is. To my alarm, I notice that I had been leaning on the intercom the whole time. And it was on. I quickly shut it off.

"How much do you wanna bet the whole school heard that?"

"Like, a lot?!"

"I better go do damage control," I groan, getting up and heading out the door. "I don't want to know what happens if this school ends up in the wrong hands.

Ava's POV

All around me, people are whispering about Cruz's sudden ranting over the intercom. Damn, he must have been pissed for that to happen.

"...knew Ace couldn't keep up the act forever…"

"...girlfriend is no better than he is…"

"...too late to get them out of office?"

"Hey, asshats!" I interrupt. "Those are my friends you're talking about. If you remember anything from last year, they're obviously stressed and struggling to deal with wishy-washy people like you."

I know, it's weird calling Cruz, er, Ace, my friend. The group of students turn around. They look at me, then they look down at my belly. Ugh, I can't get a single day without people seeing me as Ava the pregnant girl. At least it's better than being known as Ava the psycho like it happened last year.

"You're only just saying that because you're affiliated with them. But just wait until they end up kicking you to the curb too."

"They've been through a lot, and you should respect that."

"They said we're ungrateful. I'm pretty sure you're not supposed to belittle the people who voted for you."

"Last year you kicked Rose out of office based on the lies of some random girl after everything Rose has done for you all and you have the nerve to say you're not ungrateful?"

"Rose snapped at us when we apologized to her."

"Well, maybe her tolerance ran out. Even the nicest people can be the scariest."

I turn away before they say anything else. I feel one of the twins kicking inside my belly. It's freaky and cute at the same time.

After school, I wait on the bleachers for Nicole to finish cheer practice.I shouldn't have stormed off during lunch, but I didn't want to have a tug of war with Patty like I did with Uma and Jessica.

A few glee club members, Jason in the front of them, walk in the gym. He and another boy pick up an unused speaker. Jason looks very bothered by this guy, snapping at him when he gets too close. There's something...sinister about this guy.

" _I don't like it when people stare, Ava," he said, turning his face until I couldn't see him. "It makes me feel a little self-conscious."_

 _More like make sure I couldn't identify him after what he did. One hand pinned me down. The other covered my eyes. After he finished with me, I ran and didn't look back. I wish I did._

TWEEEET!

I hear the sharp whistle from the cheerleaders side.

"Hey, what are you guys doing with the speaker?" Patty demands as she, flanked by two other cheerleaders, storms up to them.

Jason shrugs.

"You weren't using it," he says calmly. "Ours is being repaired."

"I'm pretty sure you guys can just buy another speaker," she scoffs, causing Jay to snort in derision.

"Do you have any idea how much speakers cost?"

"I bet with the money you keep taking from the treasury-"

"Who said we used money from the treasury? We had to have fundraisers because our budget got cut."

"And you think that doesn't affect us too? We can't even have fundraisers because you guys keep taking all the customers."

"Ugh, whatever. I don't have time or energy to argue with you. I'll see if the music room has a spare." Jason rolls his eyes as he and the other members stroll out. Just my luck, Patty turns and notices me. Crap.

"I don't think you got the memo. This gym is reserved for the cheerleaders only," she says.

"You don't own the place. I can sit here if I damn well please," I snap. "I'm just waiting for Nicole."

Upon hearing her name, Nicole looks up hopefully. A withering glance from Patty stops this.

"Newsflash. I'm the head cheerleader-"

"You're not the only head cheerleader," Mia interrupts. "The only reason you're the co-captain is because I couldn't find anyone who matched Hermione's level after she graduated. As long as she's not distracting anyone, she should be allowed to stay."

"If you ask me, she's a HUGE distraction," Patty says maliciously.

"What, me or the zit on your head?" I challenge, causing her to recoil in horror.

"At least I can still do a basic cheer routine," she brags.

"Please. I've carried the whole team on several occasions. I could flip circles around your ass."

"I'd love to see you prove it. I hope you're still good at carrying two people."

Some of the cheerleaders gasp.

"That's not safe!" Nicole calls out.

"Shut it, newbie!" Patty hisses.

"Patty, stop it-" Mia tries to intervene.

"It's fine," I say. "I can do it."

"Ava, you're gonna hurt yourself," Nicole warns me. I don't listen. Without further prompting, I launch into a common routine (which in my opinion consists of more hip hop than cheer), ending with a triple flip and a split. My gut may be 3 times the size it used to be, but I've still got it! The other girls look amazed. Patty looks furious.

"Pfft, I can do that easily," she scoffs. She does her own routine even faster. SO fast, on of her sneakers flies off and hits me straight in the stomach.

"Kff!" I grunt, falling to the ground. I'm suddenly aware of what happened and start hyperventilating.

"Ava!" Nicole gasps, rushing to my side. She rubs my belly. "Ava, are you ok?"

"W-what if they've stopped moving?" I ask fearfully. "What if one or both of them is damaged?"

"I'll take you to the hospital," She says, pulling me up to my feet. A good thing too. My legs are trembling with worry.

"Where are you going, Nicki?" Patty demands. "She can take herself to the hospital."

"SCREW YOU, BITCH!" Nicole shouts, much to my surprise. "SERIOUSLY, GO FUCK YOURSELF!"

"N-nicole, I-"

"What she did was just wrong. If it was an accident, she should've apologized. Come on, I have the keys to my brother's car. We'll take it and I'll bring it back later."

I hold my stomach fearfully in my hands as she drives to the hospital.

"It's gonna be alright, Ava," she says softly. "I'm sure there's no lasting damage."

"I am so freaking stupid," I sniff. "I can't even keep my babies safe when they're inside me, how can I take care of them once they're born?"

"It's not your fault."

"What if they die because of me?" I ask. "Then all of this pain, heartache, everything...it would have been for nothing."

"Oh…"

"I can't help but think this was karma for me."

"Huh?"

"I was a huge bitch to everyone last year. To my best friend who was my first crush, to her boyfriend, even to my classmates. Two people almost died because of me...one of my friends...my girlfriend...she died for me."

"Ava, can I tell you a secret?"

"Uh, sure?"

"She was never dead."

"What do you mean?"

"She's alive, Ava. She's been watching over you this entire time."

"What are you talking about?"

"Oh my God, it's _me!_ " she exclaims suddenly, slamming her hand against the dashboard.

"I...I don't believe you! I saw her get shot!"

"Ava, I am her. I was the same girl who danced with you last year at a party. I was the same girl who had a date with you at Wings Atomica. I was the girl who came out to her mother because of you. I was the girl who you cuddled up with the night before I was shot, in nothing but our undergarments separating us, the girl you whispered sweet nothings to and said the words 'I love you' to."

"B-but, you-"

Uma/Nicole turns around and lowers the collar of her shirt. Sure enough, there's scars and stitches where the bullet struck her.

"It's really me, Avie…" she says.

"Where were you this whole time? I was looking for you for months!" I demand, part overjoyed, part upset, part furious.

"I'll explain later. We need to get you and the twins checked out," she says.

"You better explain later."

Aiden's POV

" _There is no upper hand, I'm giving you mine. It doesn't have to end up wasting your time. There's things that I could say, but here in my way I wanna let you know that it's all ok…_ "

I stop singing and playing the piano abruptly when I hear a whistle and a shout of, "Encore!" from behind me. Jason hugs my waist and kisses the side of my face, making me blush.

"Hey…"

"Glad to see you're feeling a little better," I say.

"Just gotta take it one day at a time, I guess. Look, babe, we need the speakers for practice if you're not using them."

"Of course, but I thought you'd be resting today."

"A, I rested all weekend," he pouts, giving me a puppy dog look I absolutely cannot resist.

"I know, I just don't want you to faint again," I say, squeezing his hands.

"I'll be fine. I'll take it easy."

"Please do."

"Bye, babe," He says with one last kiss.

No sooner does Jason leave with the speaker, my phone vibrates. Oh no, not again.

 **Karma'sComing123: Enjoy your boyfriend while he's still here, Zhou.**

 **YourMainVirtuoso: What do you mean by that?! Stay away from him.**

 **Karma'sComing123: I warned you something bad would happen if you told, but you didn't listen. Kinda like how you didn't listen to Jessica and Jason almost died because of you.**

 **YourMainVirtuoso: You leave my boyfriend alone! I won't let you hurt him!**

 **Karma'sComing123: Oh, I won't hurt him, but I know a guy who'd just enjoy having Jay's body all to himself...watching his sapphire blue eyes roll back as he's ravaged with ecstasy...his tanned cheeks flushed with heat as he's pinned down and unable to move...all while making sweet love to him...**

The person goes to lewd detail about the things his "friend" wants to do to my head starts to spin from worry. Why did this person want to hurt us so badly?

"Jason, wait!" I call at the door. He rushes back in.

"What's wrong?"

"Don't you wanna, hang out or something for once?" I ramble. He smiles, ruffling my hair.

"Ok, what's up with you?" he asks.

"I'm...uh, lonely," I say, wrapping my arms around him. With this...monster on the loose, I can't let Jason out of my sight. And I have a very sick feeling on who this "friend" is.

"Are you still worried about me?" he asks seriously.

"Yes...I think someone's trying to kidnap you...and hurt you," I say quietly.

"Sweetheart, I'll be fine. I can defend myself."

"Jay, you've barely eaten anything this morning. I don't think you're in the best shape. Please just stay here with me?"

Jason looks torn, looking between me and the door. The door swings open and (to my chagrin) Nick and Katie walk in. I notice Nick leering at Jay, and Jay looking very uncomfortable with the staring.

"Jace, I thought you were going to get the speaker, not sneak off to snuggle with your boyfriend," Katie chides. "What happened to, 'a minute we waste here is a point we lose on the stage'?"

"I know, I know," Jay sighs. "But Aiden thinks I'm being stalked."

"And I think it's someone in the school," I say, shooting a look at Nick. His eyes narrow almost imperceptibly at me. Whatever he's already done to Jason, he won't get away with it.

"You're both being ridiculous," Katie scoffs.

"There's _nothing_ ridiculous about threatening to kidnap and...and…" I trail off, not sure if I want to finish the sentence with Jason this close. "You guys just won a big competition. Just let him rest for a while."

"Um, that was just the state competition. And besides, who are you to dictate what he does with his life?" Katie demands. "Just because your his boyfriend doesn't mean you get to control him!"

"I'm not," I snap. "I care about his health, and if you were really his friend, you'd understand that!"

"Why you little-!"

"Alright, that's enough!" Jason interjects. "Babe, I know you want what's best for me, but I should probably teach the group a new routine I've thought up for regionals. But you're welcome to watch if you want."

"I...fine," I huff. Jay smiles and kisses me on the forehead. The three of them lift up the speaker and haul it into the auditorium. Once they've got it set up, Katie hangs back to talk to me.

"I don't know what you're doing with Jason to manipulate him, but I won't let you distract him from his goals," she hisses.

"I'm nothing but supportive of him, but I fear his life's really in danger. Look," I say, showing her the text messages. For a split second, recognition, maybe fear, passes through her eyes. She shakes her head.

"It's probably some troll," she mutters. "If Jason was in any real trouble then why haven't you called the police?"

"If the police get involved, it might end up hurting him."

"How do I know you aren't making this up to separate Jason from his friends?"

"With friends like you, he doesn't need enemies."

"Whatever. Just stop trying to make Jay put you above his dreams."

"How about you stop helping Nick drive a wedge between us."

She looks caught for a brief moment. She scowls.

"You don't know what you're talking about."

She walks away, and I sit in one of the chairs to watch Jason practice. He seems fine for now. My mind drifts off for a bit. There's supposed to be a senior lock-in next week. Jason and I had already picked out our spots for the lock-in. It's, uh...where we had our second make-out session...in the library, where, as Jason puts it, 'we're not going to be sleeping in there.'

My mind snaps back to reality where I hear a smack, and then Jason yelling.

"What is wrong with you!?' he seethes, pointing a finger at Nick.

"I swear, my hand just slipped up!" Nick says defensively.

"Did it slip so much that you smacked my ass in the process?!"

I feel my blood boiling. Damn, I let myself get distracted again.

"I'm so sorry you were bothered by that, Jason. I-"

"You just stay far away from me, got it?"

"I...I guess," he relents, his shoulders slumping. A few members glare at Jay.

"Dude, it was an accident. No need to be so harsh on the guy."

Jay sighs, obviously rattled.

"Take five, guys." he says before running out of the room.

Jason's POV

Katie follows me out in the hallway.

"Jason, what were you thinking?" she hisses.

"What was _I_ thinking? He purposely touched my butt!"

"It could've been an accident. And if it wasn't well, you know how Nick feels about you."

Just the thought of him touching me makes me feel dirty inside. I saw the way he looked at me when he and Katie walked in on me and Aiden. His eyes drinking in every aspect of my body greedily. There was something else in his eyes. Something primal...possessive. I shudder just thinking about it.

"And you know how uncomfortable he makes me," I say. "Honestly, I think we might have to find a new member."

"What?! And replace him with who? Aiden?"

"Well, he's a musician."

"Jay, I mean this in the best way, but you're constantly turning down someone who could be the perfect guy for you in exchange for someone who's probably holding you back."

"He's helping me recover from my eating disorder. I don't know many people who have the patience to deal with me like he does. And, well...he was the first person to accept me for me when I came out. He _is_ the perfect guy for me."

"Sure, he makes you believe that-"

"Stop. Just stop," I interrupt her. "I've been dating Aiden for a year, and you've said nothing remotely positive about him! I'm starting to wonder why we're even friends. All you've been doing is trying to break us apart."

"Jason, I just want what's best for you."

"Do you? Or are you just mad that Aiden doesn't fit your standards of a perfect guy?"

Katie splutters.

"W-what? Are you- no! Don't you see what he's doing to you? I'm losing you!"

"What do you mean by that?"

"You weren't the same after you started dating that boy. Before, you used to be all laid back and more fun. Now you're just moody and stiff."

"Katie...Aiden's last girlfriend was abusive. Very abusive. He almost died because of what she did to him. The worst part is...I used to date her too, and she was not nearly as bad. She outed me to the whole town. It felt like the whole world was against me. I snapped at him...he almost killed himself. But he reconsidered...he stayed for me…because he loved me. So please, I can't be your friend anymore if you're going to keep talking bad about him."

Katie is silent for a moment.

"Don't say I didn't warn you," she mutters before heading back inside. Aiden comes out soon after.

"Does this feel ok?" he asks, caressing my cheeks. I nod. Unlike Nick, Aiden's touch made me feel safe and loved.

"Don't stop," I say. He brushes the tiniest of kisses on my lips. I pull him back in for more heated kisses.

"Jay, I won't let that bastard hurt you anymore," he declares boldly into my ear."

"A, that's sweet and all, but Nick could grind you into a pulp. I don't want you getting hurt either."

"I know. We're going to get rid of him, I promise. Then you can go back to being the most talented, handsome-"

"Don't forget sexy," I add jokingly. Aiden rolls his eyes and chuckles.

"Yes, the most handsome, talented, sexy man I'm glad to call my boyfriend."

 _Handsome. Boyfriend. Man_.

Even if it's only temporary, this makes the harsh words hurled at me yesterday by my dad seem like a distant, numb memory.


	8. As Long As You Love Me

**Alright, this is a really long chapter (about 7k words). Most of it is about Uma and Jason's back stories and how they got to where they are now.**

 **BlackCanary98: Uma will explain her disappearance in this chapter. Katie is not Karma because she received text messages from that person. And yes, she makes no effort to hide her dislike or perhaps hatred of Aiden. And Ava and her kids will be fine.**

Uma's POV

I feel so guilty for lying to Ava for so long. She's quiet next to me in the car, clutching her stomach. Her face is gray with worry and fear. I'll explain everything once we get her situated at the hospital. We wait for the nurse to call us into the room. The doctor seems surprised to see us.

"Is something wrong, Ava? You aren't due back here for another two weeks."

"A sneaker hit her stomach," I explain.

"Are my kids gonna die?" Ava asks worriedly.

"I'll check for any damage, but I'm pretty sure you'll be fine. Come on, I'll give you an ultrasound."

"I'll stand outside," I say awkwardly.

After an agonizing 15 minutes or so, the doctor calls me back in. Ava hesitantly reaches out and squeezes my hand.

"Both fetuses are normal and healthy, probably a little startled. You're starting to get some stretch marks, Ava. I suggest applying some balm for those," the doctor says.

"Thank you, Dr. Brinkwater," Ava says gratefully. The doctor gives her a wistful smile.

"It's nothing...tell Rose I said hi, would you?" she asks. Ava nods.

"What was that about?" I ask once we're outside.

"Long story," she answers. "Speaking of which, what the hell happened to you last year?"

 _I was outside the courtroom when I saw Rose and her friends run out cheering and laughing. Jessica must have been found guilty. I panicked. She warned me something bad would happen to Ava if Aiden won the trial. And I failed._

 _I saw Jay kiss his boyfriend passionately on the lips. Then he got down on one knee, about to propose to him. Something else caught my attention. It was Jessica, pulling out a gun (Did her lawyer give her that?!) and aiming it at Ava!_

 _Without thinking, I ran and dived in the line of fire, the bullet tearing straight into my chest. I collapsed instantly. Ava rushed to my side._

 _"Uma...say something," she whispered softly. I groaned and rolled over on her back. She gasps at the gaping bullet hole through my chest.I felt my world slipping away._

 _"T-this is what I was trying to avoid," I croaked, her voice even quieter than normal. "A-avie, don't freak out, but I think I'm dying. It's so cold…"_

 _"N-no! Don't say that Uma...please," Ava choked, on the verge of tears. "Don't you dare die on me…"_

 _I gently placed a hand on her cheek, remembering the good times we had together. The night we had our first kiss replayed in my mind._

 _"Avie...everyone hates me," I sniffed. " I think it's best if-"_

 _"NO!"_

 _"Ava, I don't have much time left."_

 _"So...this is how it ends...me finding out you faked your feelings for me and now you're gonna just die on me…"_

 _"Ava, I did this for you. You deserve a second chance." My eyes clouded. "You were right about me. I am just like my family. But at least...I can be...on the right side...for...once. I love you, Ava...and don't you ever forget that…"_

 _Everything started to fade away..._

 _"Uma….you damn idiot," I faintly heard Ava sob._

 _I thought I was dead...but I didn't die._

 _When I woke up, I was in the hospital. Well in the ICU. I moaned. My mother, who was in the room, shushed me. She was glaring at me, tears in her eyes._

" _M-mom?" I whispered._

" _Don't call me that, you impudent little brat. If you weren't already strapped up to those IVs, I'd kill you myself. Why did it have to be you that survived?"_

" _Wha...what do you mean?" I asked, worried that some of my friends were injured or even killed in the fray._

" _Jessie...she ran into traffic...a truck hit her. She died on impact," My mother sobbed._

" _Mom...she shot me…" I weakly protested. "She was aiming for my girlfriend and I got hit."_

" _This is what you wanted, didn't you? You wanted her dead, all because she could be the perfect daughter you refused to be."_

 _I swear I would have recoiled if it were possible. All these years or rejection, and this stung the most. Tears started to spring to my eyes. She suspected I was gay, and when I finally came out, this made things worse between us._

 _After I got out of the hospital, my mother wouldn't speak to out, she's being investigated for that whole mess with her society with their use of force to arrange courtship and marriages. If I thought she was cold before, she was the Ice Queen now. She'd spend nights drinking her troubles away in front of a TV._

 _Then one day, there was a knock at the door. My mother rose from her drunken stupor and answered before I could get there first. I hid around the corner...when I heard Ava's voice._

" _You again?" My mother slurs. "What do you want?"_

" _I...uh...just wanted to know where Uma was,"Ava said quietly._

" _Uma?" she snorted. "I dunno anybody by that name. Now get lost before I call security."_

" _Ma'am, please," Ava's voice cracked. "I just need to know where she's-"_

 _Mother slammed the door in her face. At that, she turned and spotted me. I panicked and tried to run. She grabbed me by the arm and slapped me hard._

" _M-mother!" I gasped, my cheek throbbing from the impact._

" _You useless waste of space! I should have aborted you. Had I known my only child was going to end up being a good-for-nothing lesbian, I would've! You are forbidden from seeing that red haired dyke anymore If I catch you with her, there'll be hell to pay. Get to your damn room. I don't ever want to see you again!"_

 _So I scampered up the stairs. I passed by Jessica's room. I glanced back downstairs. She would definitely not be coming up here anytime soon. Besides, she always gave more attention to Jessica anyway and gave her large and expensive gifts. I felt a twinge of guilt for thinking this, but she's dead now, why can't I have the spoils. I snuck into her room and looked around. You could compare her room to mine and see that hers is 10 times better. Well, if I was going to be locked away from my girlfriend who probably thinks I'm dead,, I might as well make the most of it. I moved her blankets and pillows into my room, replaced my electronics with hers, and raided her mini-fridge and closet. Seriously, the way my mother spoiled her was insane._

 _Turns out, she was serious about not seeing Ava anymore. She made sure I was escorted to and from school. She even made sure Ava wasn't allowed near Statton High School. She tried to get me to go to conversion therapy, but I threatened to call the police on her._

 _This went on for months. 11 months actually. I tried scrolling through Lakeside's website, looking for something,_ anything _to tell me how Ava was doing. But it appeared like she'd dropped off the face of the earth. One time, I tried Hearst's website. Nothing. I was about to give up when I saw this message._

 _ **N1CK1-101: So sick of the school scene here. Wish someone would swap places with me for a while and let me breathe. Call this number if interested!**_

 _I thought it was too good to be true. But I called the number anyway._

" _Damn, I didn't think anyone would actually take me seriously," she said. "You really want to do this?"_

" _Yes, I do," I answered. "I need to find my girlfriend."_

" _She ran off?" Nicole asked sadly._

" _My mother won't let me see her and I don't know where she is."_

" _I swear, parents are so smothering. My mom is so damn occupied with my brother causing trouble here at Hearst. We're transferring to Lakeside High in two days."_

" _Well, I go to Statton High school."_

" _Ooh, is that the fancy art school? I'd love to go there. I heard you have to be a genius just to get in."_

" _I know, heh. Can you meet me at my school then? I'm kinda not allowed anywhere else."_

" _Cool, cool. Just bring everything we need to make the switch and I'll give you the details."_

 _I can't believe it was that easy. Just as planned, Nicole shows up and meets me in the custodian's closet._

" _As of now, you're Uma Ngyuen, heiress of millionaire Ruby Ha Ngyuen. Your hair is light blue, you're a leading actress in the play Macbeth,there's a bunch of food and clothes in my room so stay clear of my mother at all times, and you like girls."_

" _That last one won't be a problem," Nicole joked. "Ok, you're name is Nicole Blake. You have black hair. Your brother is Nicholas Blake. He's a troublemaker, almost as bad as Max, but he hides it under a sickly sweet personality. Most of what you need to know about him is all over Hearst's gossip blog run by Kara Sinclair. My mom wants me to be a cheerleader, so if you know how to do a couple flips or whatever, that would be great. Oh, and stay clear of Nick. He's an ass to me."_

 _Within a few days, we had assumed each other's lives and made the switch. Blame it on my acting experience, but I got so engrossed in the role that I convinced myself that I really_ was _Nicole, and it worked. Nick didn't even seem to notice the difference as I sat next to him in the car._

 _I tried out for the cheerleading team and surprisingly, they let me in...as a junior varsity cheerleader. Nicole's mother was ecstatic. As head cheerleader, Patty kinda made me her personal servant, demanding I follow her around and do her dirty work for her. So I was with her in the bathroom when Ava walked in. Thankfully she didn't see me. Patty and one of the glee club members were in the stalls gossiping. From what I caught, Jay was having issues with his boyfriend Aiden at the time. Damn, I've been out of the loop for a long time._

 _Anyway, Ava tried to get them to move so she could use the bathroom. I noticed she was holding her stomach, which was unusually large and swollen._

 _Could she be...I thought she…_

 _Patty, of course, decided to be a bitch to her. Likewise, Ava punched her in the mouth and pushed past her. Patty stormed out with her friend. I stayed back to check up on her. She peered out from the stall, her beautiful green eyes surrounded by her curly red hair, her red lips pulled into a cute pout._

 _I found her._

"U-uma...you recognized me...why didn't you tell me?"

"I didn't want you to freak out...and I thought you'd blame me for what happened to you."

"This isn't your fault...I wasn't careful...It's just, when it happened, I thought it was gonna be when I was older. Having children, I mean. Just me and my wife starting a family…" Tears start welling in Ava's eyes and streaming down her face. I gently place a hand on her belly. She lets me do this, placing hers on top of mine. I feel something poke my hand. Ava smiles at me through her tears.

"They're kicking," I say softly. She nods. "Avie…"

"Don't leave me like that again," Ava says, throwing her arms around me. I so very want to say that I promise to do that, but I don't want to break her heart again after she's been through so much. I love her…

"Ava-"

"Promise me?"

"I…"

"Uma...please…if you really love me, I need an answer."

"I'll do the best that I can,"I say, cupping her cheek. She kisses me fiercely. A million emotions run through me at once.

Nick's POV

"Nothing's working," Katie tells me after school. "I keep telling Jay his boyfriend's manipulating him, but that boy has him wrapped around his finger."

"The dude's blinded by love," I grumble. "The wrong love. I could treat him so much better."

"One question. Did you purposely smack his butt during practice?"

I chuckle, replaying the episode in my mind. "Well, he likes shaking it in front of an audience, I couldn't help it."

"I dunno, he seemed really upset by it."

"He dances like a freaking stripper and you know it. He's been warned about his provocative performances long before I got here. Can't help it if a guy happens to notice when someone's asking for attention."

"What's gotten into you, Nick?" she asks.

"Frustrated, really. Look, every person I've dated either dumped me or cheated on me. So when I find a sweet guy who looks like everything I've ever wanted in a partner, and find out he's taken, naturally I'm a little pissed."

Pissed? More like furious. I swear, when I finally get ahold of Jason, I won't let him go. He won't have a choice.

Katie looks sympathetic. "I know, I've been waiting for them to split up for good, but whenever the break up seems imminent, they're back in each others arms, because 'they love each other too much to stay apart.' Ugh."

"Katie, can I tell you something?"

"What's up?"

"I...I did something I'm not proud of."

"What's that?"

"You know someone by the name by Karma'sComing123?"

"Y-yes?"

"I've been trying to scare Aiden into breaking up with him. Or kill himself. Whichever comes first."

Katie blinks. Once. Twice. She laughs.

"Wait, so you're the 'stalker' Aiden was going on about? That was you texting me? Damn, it sounds sick, but it's freaking hilarious at the same time. I can believe he hasn't put two and two together. Uh, hello? You know all of Jay's friends hate you, take a hint much?"

This makes me chuckle. It's clear she dislikes him almost as much as I do, and she's less likely to turn on me when my plan to get Jason all to myself goes down.

"I can't believe your willing to risk Jay's friendship just so he won't stay with Aiden," I remark. "You seem quite loyal."

"Well, he's been my best friend since he transferred here as a sophomore in the winter. I'd hate it if anything bad happened to him because of…well, you were practically inseparable until one day he brought his long lost crush to movie night last year. Suddenly, _they're_ always together. It's like he suddenly replaced me with Aiden. You know how that feels when someone who used to be like a sibling to you now barely gives you the time of day. "

I personally think she's overreacting. She sees him everyday during practice.

"Yeah...Well, I have a plan as to how we can solve both our problems. You know Jason's constantly torn between choosing us or his boyfriend. He'll have to choose eventually. We'll just speed up the process."

"But what if he ends up choosing Aiden anyway?" Katie asks.

"With the way Aiden's always badgering him about him being safe and eating, it won't be long until he starts to wear down because of it. No one likes a hoverer."

Jason's POV

"What's wrong, Jason?" Aiden asks. "Do you feel sick?"

"No...it's just...you know performance school auditions are coming up, right?"

"Of course. My audition for Juilliard is coming up in March. I'm so nervous. I'm going out for composition, violin, piano, and trumpet."

"They don't call you the music man for nothing," I joke, brushing a kiss on his cheek. "I've got butterflies in my stomach just thinking about my dance and vocal auditions."

"Well, if it makes you feel any better, I get chills hearing you sing or watching you dance," he says.

"I haven't felt this tingly since I started glee club in the 10th grade."

 _Back when I was about 15 or 16, we had finally moved back to town after my father deemed me "passable" as a guy. My parent heard of a new high school that opened, so they enrolled me there. Well, my dad had me enrolled as Jayda, but that's a different story._

 _I remember meeting the founder of the school. To my surprise, she was a high schooler like me. Rose was very friendly and eager to help anyone in need._

 _It was nice and all, but I didn't feel like I fit in as well as the other kids. I wanted to be around people like me. People that liked to sing and dance, I mean. So I caught up to Rose one day to talk to her about starting a glee club_

" _Hi there, Rose!" I greeted the pink haired girl. She looked up at me, a little startled. I was still getting used to being on T, so my voice cracks every once in a while. I hope she didn't notice._

" _Whoa! Looks like you're, uh, full of enthusiasm today," She gasped. "Your name is, uh, Jayda, right?"  
_ " _It's uh, Jason actually," I corrected her. " and as for enthusiasm, you might even call it GLEE!"_

 _Cue jazz hands. I was such a dork back then. Rose smiled._

" _Well, it's nice to see you so happy.," she said._

" _Well I'm not ALWAYS this way. I was just getting excited, remembering my glory days. At my old school, being part of the glee club was one of my main things... Singing and dancing are my two favorite things EVER. So a club that lets you do BOTH is the ultimate!"_

" _Heh. It does sound pretty fun."_

" _To be honest, it's been kind of bumming me out that we don't have a glee club here," I sighed. "Without glee in my life I'm just... less gleeful!"_

 _I pretended to sink to the ground in absolute desperation. Rose giggled._

" _Sounds like there's an easy way to fix this problem... I'll help you start a glee club!" She offered. I nearly hugged her._

" _That's amazing! We'll do it! Can you sing? Can you dance?!" I asked a little too excitedly._

 _In response, Rose hopped on a fountain._

" _I'm bringing booty baaaaaack! Go and tell them skinny bitches that!" she sang. I clapped as she took a bow._

" _Damn, we have a little Meghan Trainor in our midst," I exclaimed. "The important thing is, you've got the right attitude. This is going to be the best glee club ever! There's no time to waste! Sectionals are just around the corner!"_

" _Sounds like we'd better get started."_

" _Yeah... I have to admit, I wouldn't mind giving my old school a run for their money. The lead soloist kicked me off the team because he thought I'd steal his spotlight! But I don't even care who does the solos. I just want to sing!"_

 _Well, the part about the soloist kicking me off the team was only partially true. He was actually worried that everyone liked me more than him, which wasn't my fault. Well, that and the fact that I nearly kicked his ass when he called me a little bitch for wanting to do a solo for once._

" _Sounds like your old glee club could use a little competition... And we're just the people to beat them!" She said confidently._

" _Sounds good! I'll put together a sign-up sheet!" I told her._

 _Soon after, I tacked a sign up sheet to the bulletin board where everyone could see it._

" _At my old school, getting into the glee club was SUPER competitive... Do you think one sign-up sheet will be enough? Maybe I should print more!"_

" _Let's start with one and see how it goes!"_

 _After a while, we went back to the bulletin board to check the sign up sheet. My heart sank a little when I saw it._

" _One person?! Only ONE PERSON signed up?"_ I pouted. I know people didn't know me that well back then, but come on! That was disappointing to see.

" _Well... one is better than zero," Rose said awkwardly. "And quality is more important than quantity! Who signed up?"_

" _Payton." I had no clue who that girl was, only the fact that she had a thing for parties and was dating some musician._

" _That's perfect," Rose squealed. "Payton is a trendsetter! Where she goes others follow! With her on the team, we'll be sure to add more people over time!"_

" _In that case, let's tell Payton it's time for our first club meeting!" I said, heading to the prep hangout._

 _Rose, me, and Payton met after school..._

" _Hi, Rose!" Payton chirped. "I brought a headshot and a demo reel so you can get a sense of my musical style!"_

 _Payton opened up her laptop, and a video of her singing began to play._

" _All I want is to mess around, and I don't really care about...if you love me, if you hate me, you can't save me, baby, baby! All my life I've been good but now, I'm thinking what the hell?" went her harmonious voice."_

" _Wow! You're amazing!" I gasped, causing Payton to blush a little._

" _I know, right?" she gushed. " So... am I on the team? Or do you still have to listen to the other auditions?"_

 _She gave Rose and I an expectant look._

" _There are no other auditions," Rose said. Payton looked shocked. Uh oh, I better make sure she doesn't decide to back out as a result…_

" _Uh... but we're hoping you can help with that! Especially since we see you as the club's STAR!" I exclaimed suddenly._

" _Me? The STAR?" Payton said, her hazel eyes wide with surprise._

" _Sure thing! Given your talent, you should definitely take the solo!" I said. Payton didn't seem like the type to kick people out because of their talent._

" _Are you sure, Jay?" Rose asked me._

" _Of course! I'm just happy to be on the team," I said beaming. At least the group was starting to come together._

" _In that case," Payton continued. " I'm officially on the squad... and I think I know the next person we should add to the team! It's time for us to do a little recruiting!"_

 _Payton lead us to the gym, were a muscular jock was sitting by himself lifting weights and singing to himself. That's not something you see everyday._

" _...lifting weights... is pretty great... so please don't hate…" he crooned._

" _I never noticed before…" Rose murmured. "... but Julian is constantly singing little songs to himself!"_

" _Yeah, he's got a pretty good voice," I admitted._

" _I knew you guys would agree... Julian will be perfect for the glee club!" Payton whispered. The three of us approached Julian. The latino male looked up at us in curiosity._

" _Hey there! What's the big idea?" Rose asked, smiling. "You can't keep a talent like that to yourself!"_

 _Julian looked confused._

" _You mean... my weight lifting ability?" he said, flexing his biceps._

" _I mean your voice! It's incredible!" Rose pointed out. Julian flushed._

" _You weren't supposed to hear me singing," he grumbled._

" _Well we did, and well, it rocked, glee club could use a talent like yours," I said. The muscular jock scowled at the three of us._

" _I'm not joining some stupid glee club!" he snarled. " I've got an image to protect! There's nothing manly about singing songs while you're dressed up like Lady Gaga's butler!"_

 _I snickered at this mental image._

" _You're sure you won't reconsider?" I asked, trying to hold in my laughter._

" _Sorry, dude. I'm a jock. That's my thing. I don't do glee." he shrugged and went back to his workout._

 _Payton pulled us aside._

" _I think I know how we can convince him. We've just got to frame this the right way!"she said._

 _Payton sauntered up to Julian._

" _Glee CAN be manly, you know. Don't you watch TV?" she asked._

" _I mostly watch football... and home improvement shows," he admitted._

" _Too bad you don't watch MTV. Have you seen the VMAs? Everyone goes CRAZY for pop stars," Rose added._

" _And male singers like Justin Timberlake and Jay-Z are TOTALLY manly!" Payton gushed. Man, the girls were really hamming it up._

" _And as a member of the glee club, you could be just like them!" Rose continued. Julian considered this for a moment."_

" _People do like singer-guys, don't they?"_

" _They really do."_

" _Okay. You talked me into it," he relented. "But the second you try to dress me like a backup dancer in a Miley Cyrus video, I'm out."_

 _This time I couldn't help but snort aloud at this._

" _That's what I'm walking about! We've got our core group! Now we just have to get five or six backup singers to fill out our chorus," I said after we regrouped at the prep hangout."_

" _Maybe a little performance would show off our skills... and entice a few more people to join," Rose suggested._

" _Awesome. "We can practice... and then perform at lunch tomorrow," I agreed. To cope with transitioning, I had taken up dance and voice lessons. They helped a lot...especially since the only guy who actually cared about me is nowhere to be found._

 _So I taught the current members - me, Rose, Peyton and Julian- a few basic moves to show off at lunch. The cheerleaders begin to file in, then the gamers, then the actors._

" _Okay, trust me, guys. You're going to love this," Rose assured the crowd. A lot of them looked skeptical. Not good._

" _I don't see why we need a glee club. The cheerleaders already provide... cheer! That's the same thing as glee!" The head cheerleader interjected._

" _Yeah, I don't get it. It's like playing a karaoke game... without the game!" complained a gamer._

" _It's just singing as far as I can tell. True art needs to tell a story!" griped an actress. Ok, seriously? Fuck you._

" _Just give it a chance. You might change your minds," Rose pleaded._

" _I dunno, Rose," one of the cheerleaders, who I would get to know as Ava, called out. "You only have like five members Can you really make something awesome of of that?"_

 _Rose sat really close to her, an arm around her shoulder._

" _Avie, come on. At least sit through this performance for me?" she asked, pouting. Ava turned three shades redder._

" _Well, I...um...I mean...argh! Fine. Just stop making that face at me!"_

 _Rose gave her a tight hug and rushed on stage._

" _5, 6, 7, 8!"_

 _The glee club came on stage and began to sing and dance… I saw the attitude of the crowd start to change as we performed._

" _Oh wow! I LOVE this song! Maybe GLEE really is different than CHEER!"_

" _And getting a live audience's reaction to your singing is pretty sweet. It's like a music-themed MMORPG... IRL!"_

" _That was so much more than mere singing... it was a true PERFORMANCE!"_

 _The performance ended, and Rose circulated through the crowd with the sign up sheet. A total of six people sign up! We're getting there!_

" _We did it! We've got a full squad!" Rose squealed, jumping up and down._

" _Does that mean... we're ready for sectionals?' Julian asked._

" _No way!" I shook my head. "Before that, we've got to practice... And we're going to need some awesome costumes!"_

" _Good call. Let's start with outfits for the female backup singers…" Rose said. After a few days, we managed to get stylish outfits for the girls."These costumes look amazing!"_

" _Clothing coordination for the win! But I can pick out my own clothes, right?" Payton asked._

" _Sure thing!" I agreed. "The leads can wear what they want. It'll make them stand out."_

" _Heh. Perfect," Julian chuckled._

" _But I still want Julian to help me pick out clothes for the male backup singers! We're going to the mall!" I said. Julian gulped._

" _The... mall?!"_

" _Which store do we hit first?" I asked._

" _American Eagle?"_

" _Nordstroms?"_

" _Or for something a little more out there, maybe Hot Topic?!"_

" _Whoa, whoa, whoa. Isn't that where vampires shop?" The jock shook his head. "Maybe a sporting goods store?"_

 _Payton glared at him._

" _You're not dressing our backup singers in jerseys and cleats!" she growled in a tone that implied Julian best obey. Suddenly, Julian stopped in front of a store window..._

" _This! This is what I'm TALKING about!" he pointed out. He pulled out a bunch of red suits that looked like the uniform of an all male prep school. Nice. he handed one to me to try on. I went into the changing room. From the outside, I heard them talking about the outfits._

" _Wow! Good choices, Julian!"_

" _The cut of the shirt will really accentuate the backup singers' physiques…"_

" _And they're a near-perfect match with the girls' outfits!"_

" _Another clothing coordination victory!"_

" _I just tried to pick stuff that wasn't lame."_

" _Jason, you doing ok in there?" Rose asked. At this point, I had stripped completely down to my undergarments. I looked down at myself, at my curved hips, at my fat and jiggly thighs, at my chest barely concealed by my binder. I felt the walls closing in on me. I knew this feeling of dysphoria all too well. I felt fake, and if the others knew my secret, they would know I was fake too._

" _Jace, sweetie, you're awfully quiet in there," Payton commented. "Are you in any trouble?"_

" _N-no! I'll be out in a minute," I said quickly. I put on the suit and head out the changing stall. The others whistle and clap in approval._

" _Looking good, Jason!" Rose commented._

" _The ladies are going to be all over you!" Payton gushed. I blushed from the positive attention I was getting. I guess they haven't figured me out yet. That's good. It means Dad won't have to pull me out of school again._

" _Okay... we've got outfits for everyone. Time for our last few practices!" I said._

 _Over the next few practices, the glee club became a well-oiled machine. By the last practice we were ready for sectionals. I felt on top of the world._

 _That feeling didn't last, however, when I was called into the office. My parents were waiting for me. My dad had an especially livid look on his face._

" _Look, if this is about my classwork, I've been diligent about turning it i-"_

" _That's not what this is about, ," Professor Edwin said sternly. "This is about you attending school here on a fake name. Jason, I presume._

" _But my name is Jas-" my dad kicked my shin out of the table. "I mean, I-I thought it would be a funny prank."_

" _Is that why I've been getting calls about Jayda Parker not being in class and an unregistered Jason Parker in her place?" My dad demanded. I'd forgotten my parents had me registered as Jayda._

 _I looked between my parents and Professor Edwin, panicking. I opened my mouth to say something but nothing came out so I just stood there gaping like a fucking fish. I tried to focus my attention elsewhere. The walls, the ceilings, Rose, the posters...Rose?!_

 _There she was at a desk with a sign that said, "Admissions counselor" . Oh God, she heard the entire conversation! Without warning, I bolted out of the office._

 _I hid in the nearest closet and shut the door, trying to steady my breathing._

 _A while later, I heard a gentle knock at the door._

" _G-go away!" I barked._

" _Jay, its Rose. Can I come in?" She asked._

" _I don't want to talk to anyone right now."_

" _I know you're very upset right now, but people are starting to look for you."_

" _...ok, fine."_

 _Rose walked in and sat down next to me. I was curled up against the wall, facing away from her._

" _...is there something you want to tell me?"_

 _I took a shaky breath. "...Rose...I...I'm trans. Trans guy, that is. That's why there's a Jayda in the system and not a Jason. Jason's not even my legal name as of now. My parents think it's just a phase. I didn't think the teachers would catch on so quickly...they're gonna make me move away again!"_

 _Rose was the first person I'd willingly come out to in years. She placed a hand over my trembling hands._

" _Jason, that's not gonna happen. I promise," she said softly. "I'll just tell the office that there was a little mix-up with the admissions process and I'll sort everything out with your teachers."_

" _But then they'll find out and then-"_

" _They won't. Now come on, we have to meet with the rest of the club before sectionals."_

" _Ok...one more thing?"_

" _Yeah?"_

" _Please don't tell anyone about this."_

" _Of course."_

 _Rose made sure the entire issue was swept under the table and the teachers continued addressing me as Jason. Thankfully, my parents weren't called again._

 _Together, we made it into the auditorium where the rest of the group was practicing._

" _My solos are ROCKING!" Payton cheered. She sang a scale. "La la la la la la la la LAAAAA!"_

" _And my harmonies are really coming along!" Julian added._

" _See, Jason? Things are coming together," Rose whispered. I grinned at her._

" _My old team isn't going to know what hit them!" I said with a smirk. "We're ready for sectionals!"_

 _A week later we stood in the parking lot as the bus pulled up to drive us to the competition._

" _Okay, everyone. The bus is here!" I announced. Everyone boarded the bus and sat next to a partner. A girl with her good hair pulled into a loose ponytail sat next to me._

"Let me guess," Aiden interrupts. "This is where you met Katie?"

"First of all, no interrupting. Second of all, yes. I was really nervous and she calmed me down. Anyway…"

" _A six-hour bus trip with a bunch of glee kids... I think I know what THAT means!" Payton said. "Singing, and lots of it!"_

" _I brought a karaoke machine!" A girl called out. "Who's ready to sing for six hours straight?!"_

" _Me, me, me!" Several voices responded._

" _As long as you can promise to avoid 'The Wheels on the Bus Go Round and Round', I'm in," Julian chuckled._

" _I'll take it off the song list immediately. I noted, settling into the bus seat._

" _Hey," the girl said cheerfully. "I don't know if you know me, but I'm Kaitlyn, but everyone calls me Katie. You must be Jason._

" _Yep. That's my name, don't wear it out, heh, heh."_

" _Are you nervous?" she asked._

" _Not really," I said. I sang backup for Payton, so I was sure everyone's eyes would be on her and not on me._

" _I kinda am. This is my first singing competition...and well, I have a lot of friends here, even though this school's been open for several months..."_

" _Well, uh...do you want to be my friend?"_

" _Really?" she said eagerly._

" _Yeah, I'm kinda new here."_

 _So Katie and I got to know each other during that long bus ride to sectionals._

 _After a long bus trip..._

" _I can't wait for our performance!" squealed Payton, clapping her hands together._

" _I'll go check us in while everyone else gets ready," Rose said._

" _Sounds good... and make sure you watch out for my old team! They've been known to play dirty, so we'd better be careful!" I replied, going on my way to check out the scope._

 _A little later..._

" _Okay, everyone. Ready to go on?" Rose asked._

" _My vocal chords are all warmed up and ready to rock!" Julian thundered._

" _I'm ready too... but I think we're missing one thing!" I said._

" _Wha...Oh God...Payton!" Rose exclaimed. We've got to go find her now!"_

" _I'll check outside…" Julian offered._

" _I'll check in the main lobby." I added. Rose grabbed my arm._

"Jay _, wait... If we DON'T find Payton, we're going to need someone else to sing her solo," she said._

" _That's not an option. No one else is as good as she is!" I refused. I shook my head. I was fine singing backup, where no one could possibly hear my voice break or my shirt slip and reveal my binder or-_

" _That's where you're wrong," Rose interrupted sternly. "That kind of talk will get you nowhere. I've heard you singing backup for her... you've totally got the talent to pull this off!"_

" _That's... that's not an option!" I ran off before Rose could protest._

 _Thankfully, we saw Payton in the crowd before it was too late._

" _Payton! There you are!" Rose sounded relieved. So was I._

" _Don't look so worried, Rosie," Payton giggled. " I was just hanging out with a few new friends!"_

 _She pointed to a nearby group of students, dressed in matching tuxes and cocktail dresses. Fuck. It's them._

" _That's my old team!" I gasped._

" _Really? Why'd you say they're mean?" Payton pouted. "They were super nice to me! They even bought me ice cream!"_

" _Holy fuck, dude. Ice cream? Don't you know dairy coats your vocal chords?!"_

" _That's silly! I'm sure I can sing just fine."_

 _Payton tried to sing a scale, but failed._

" _Oh no! You're right!" she gasped._

" _What are we going to do now?" I sighed. "It's over, guys. Payton can't perform."_

 _The others looked disappointed. I was disappointed as well. I actually had a shot of fitting in here, and I blew it. I turned to go to the parking lot and wait for the bus when Katie stopped me._

" _So that's it? Are you just going to give up and go home? ...or are you going to do the solo?!" Katie demanded, her hands on her hips._

" _I... I can't! I'm a backup singer. Not a star!" I gasped. They weren't going to let me back out of this._

" _That's just what the people wanted you to believe! That you weren't meant for great things ...but you know what?" Rose added. "That's not the guy you are anymore!"_

" _I... I don't know if I can do it!"_

" _Come on, Jason! This is your moment!" Katie pleaded. "If anyone can help us win this, it's you. I've known you for a short while, but I bet you'll be amazing on stage._

" _I can't do this!" I gasped. I felt my body freeze all over. The walls were closing on me again. Everyone's voices were fading away._

 _Just then, my old team walked by. The assholes simply laughed at me and kept walking. As they leave I heard something that sounds like... 'Little bitch...'_

 _My eyes flew open with a fire I'd never felt before._

" _We haven't lost yet... Guys, I'm ready for my solo!"_

 _The others started cheering._

 _The glee club flew onstage, and the performance began with an explosion of music and dance.! At first, everyone is singing together...As everyone sang, we did a coordinated dance. The team performed a complicated set of dance moves: flips, pirouettes, and headspins! Until the moment arrived for my big solo!_

 _Everyone looked at me expectantly. All my guts were in knots. Rose smiled faintly. Katie gave me a thumbs up._

 _I took center stage...and I killed it! I rocked the solo! As the performance ended, the audience exploded in applause!_

" _You did it, Jason," Katie squealed, giving me a tight hug._

" _WE did it!" I corrected._

 _Later..._

" _Rose, Katie. I can't thank you guys enough for talking some sense into me," I said on the bus. "I can't believe I was going to run off and give up on myself._

" _Of course, Jason," Rose said. "That's kinda what I'm here for."_

" _And now that we won first place, I bet lots of people will want to join the glee club," Katie added._

 _She was right. Rose, Julian, and Payton later left because of other commitments, but the club size exploded over the years as we started winning competition after competition._

When I finished my retelling, Aiden was dozing peacefully on my shoulder. I laugh and nip his shoulder. He moans. His eyes spring open as he looks around.

"No one heard that right?" he asks, turning red.

"Just me. Come on, sleepyhead. I wanna hear you practice for your audition," I say.

"Only if I get to see you practice too.


	9. I Know I'm Better Off Without You

**BlackCanary98: I'm glad you liked the flashbacks. Yeah, sorry about that error. I fixed it now. Trust me, Jason will absolutely loathe Katie once he finds out what she and Nick are planning**

Aiden's POV

"Thanks for having us over for dinner guys," Rose says later that night. Ace, for once, is suspiciously quiet.

"What's up with Ace?" I ask.

"The intercom was left on when he was ranting about the students being ungrateful...and pretty much everyone heard it, so he's sulking," Rose answers, stroking her boyfriend's cheek. "Poor baby…"

"I heard the lock-in was postponed," Jay says.

"Yeah, turns out we don't have enough funding for it so soon," Rose sighs. "We're thinking of finding another location to accommodate more students. Ace suggested a district wide lock-in."

"You mean we'd have to stay in a building with Hearst?" I crinkle my nose at the thought."

"I'm pretty sure it won't be a problem, babe," Jay says, playing with a strand of my hair. "I'm sure we can still find a private location to-"

"Hey, who wants more mashed potatoes?" I interrupt him. Rose giggles and I turn a deep shade of red. I'm so glad my parents were out of town for the week. I shoot a look at Jason, who merely gives me a lazy grin. I can't help but smile too.

"Did you guys get news about your auditions?" Rose asks. I nod.

"Mine's a day after his," Jay answers. "So I get to cheer my boy on while he nails that audition."

"Come on, I'm not _that_ good," I chuckle sheepishly.

"Oh, quit being so modest. You're so talented. Or are you just saying that to get a compliment from me?"

"Maybe I am, maybe I'm not," I smile, my lips briefly brushing against his. "You wanna meet tomorrow morning at the cafe for breakfast?"

His face falls. "I...uh, I have practice early that morning."

"But Jay, you practice during and after school. Can't you skip it?"

"I can't just ditch the team, A," he says with a slight hint of annoyance.

"I'm not asking you to ditch them, I just want you to, you know, just chill out for a while."

"I don't need to chill out." There was more of an edge in his voice. "I need to practice for regionals."

"You say that all the time. I'm just looking out for your health."

"I slip up one time and suddenly you're my doctor?" he snaps. He shakes his head. "Sorry, I got a little worked up. I'm gonna head to bed now."

"But it's barely 7."

"I'm tired, ok? And I need to get up early Night."

He picks up his half-full plate and heads upstairs.

"Here we go again," I sigh. "Just when I thought he was starting to get better."

"These things take time Aiden. Jason can't recover overnight, no matter how much you want him to," Rose tells me sadly.

"I...I know. But I love Jay. I don't want to get in the way of his dreams...but I don't want him to hurt himself because of them. When Jason was attacked last year, I really thought it was the end of him, of _us_. I just want him to be safe and happy no matter what. Even if it means..."

 _...that I have to break up with you so you wouldn't have to choose between glee and me_ …

Rose reaches out and puts her hand over mine.

"Aiden, you know he'd never choose glee over you."

"I don't think he'll have a choice. He doesn't want to let his group down. Not when they're this close to winning regionals. It would mean the world to him for people to see him as...well, him. I could never stop him from that."

"I know it's hard, but I'm sure things'll work out in the end," she says. "Well, Ace and I have to go soon, so enjoy your evening."

"I guess," I mutter as she and Ace leave. I head upstairs myself after putting the dishes away. Jay is already sound asleep on the bed when I come into my room. I slip in by his side and try to sleep as well.

But not long after I've managed to fall asleep, I hear Jay fidgeting and mumbling something in his sleep.

"No...please stop…let me go!"

He starts hyperventilating. I grab him arms firmly.

"Jay...JAY!"

"Wha…"

"Shh...you're fine now, it was just a bad dream."

"I wasn't having a bad dream," he stammers.

"You sounded pretty terrified. It sounded like someone was holding you captive and hurting you."

In the pale moonlight, I see absolute terror in his tearful blue eyes.

"It was probably nothing. Must have been something I ate."

"We ate the same thing, Jace. Come on, you can trust me."

"...ok." Jason takes a steady breath. "I had a nightmare...about Nick."

"What happened? Did he hurt you?"

"...yes. It hurt so much and he didn't care...as long as he could get off to it..."

"Was I there?"

"You were dead. He stabbed you and left you to die while he took me away."

"Jason, I cannot let you go back to glee club if being near Nick makes you feel this way," I say firmly, pressing my forehead to his.

"Then they'll know something's up. I don't want Nick to retaliate against me or you. Can I please go back to sleep now?"

It's pretty obvious Jay's not telling me the full truth. But I don't want us to fall back into that strange limbo where our boundaries are invisible and we don't know when we've gone too far.

"You really want to go through with this?"

Jason swallows hard.

"Would it make you feel better if you came with me?"

"I don't know, don't your friends hate having me around all the time?"

"They're not my real friends if they can't understand how important you are to me," he says, resting my head on his chest. I can hear his heart beating like crazy. "I feel...I feel safe when I'm with you."

"Really?"

"Yeah, you're like a life sized teddy bear I can cuddle with to feel better," he replies, hugging me to prove his point.

"I am not a life-sized teddy bear," I pout. I'm joking, but it's nice to hear Jason laugh because of it.

"Uh, the button eyes and soft hair don't lie, Aiden," he chuckles. "But thanks. That kinda helped."

I give him a quick peck on the cheek and go back to sleep.

The next morning, Jason wakes me up at...five thirty in the goddamn morning.

"Mmm, five more minutes," I groan. Even I didn't wake up this early.

"By my standards, we're late. I'm going to school with or without you, Sleeping Beauty."

"I'm coming, I'm coming," I grumble, dragging myself out of bed. Jason was already fully dressed. I barely eat breakfast before we're both rushing out the door. By the time we get to school, the doors are locked. Jason pulls out a key and opens the door.

"Rose gave me a key to practice," Jay answers before I can comment. "The others will be here soon. Come on, I'll show you the dance we've been working on."

He pulls me onto the stage and attaches his phone to a speaker. When the music starts, he sidles up to me, a coy smile on his face.

"I don't remember this song being part of the performance," I say.

"Well, it's not," Jay admits. I just wanted to dance with you."

"Well, you could've asked," I say with a smirk as he puts one hand in mine and one around my waist. We dance together to the sensual beat of the music, our bodies pressed together. (I can feel poor Jay's bones through his skin, though.) He dips me, pulling me into a soft, lingering kiss as he does.

"Aiden, I-"

The music stops suddenly. We look up, and see a few of the glee club members watching us.

"So is he going to be following you everywhere from now on?" Katie asks disdainfully.

"I asked him to come with me," Jason says defensively. "He's not bothering anyone."

"Do you know what could happen if other people start finding out we come here early to practice?"

"I'm not a snitch," I argue. "I just want to make sure Jay's safe."

"He doesn't need you to be safe. He has all of us."

I open my mouth to retort but Nick walks in at the moment. I feel Jay stiffen next to me, his muscles suddenly taut.

"Hey, Jace," he says with a smile. Then in a slightly less nice tone, "Aiden."

Neither of us respond, much to Nick's annoyance. He rolls his eyes and goes to set up. Jay rests his head on top of mine, sighing heavily.

"Ahem," Katie interrupts. "Not sure if you got the memo, but practice is starting."

She says this with a tone that indicates I better let go of Jay. I walk of the stage and sit in one of the chairs near the front. She narrows her eyes at me.

"I'm not leaving," I assert, my hands crossed over my chest.

"We can't risk our performance getting leaked, so-"

"Are you sure that's what this is about?" I hiss. "Or is it so I don't know what you and Nick are planning to do to Jason?"

"I...I have no idea what you're talking about! You have no right to make those accusations," she sneers, getting in my face.

"Guys, enough with the fighting!" Jason pleads, getting in between us. "What's going on?"

"Your neurotic boyfriend's gone off the deep end, that's what!"

"Oh, I'm the one who's neurotic? Just admit that it's been you targeting us this whole time!"

"Jace, I've known you for three years. Are you seriously going to believe him even though you've only dated him for one year?"

Jason looks between the two of us, obviously conflicted. He shakes his head in irritation.

"I really don't have time for this," he says, walking away. Katie scoffs at me before following him.

Rose's POV

I wake up to the sound of Roscoe's daughter Alicia crying softly in her room. I walk to her crib and pick her up.

"Poor Allie," I coo, tickling the little baby under her chin. "Is someone lonely?"

"Raah," she babbles. I can't tell if she's trying to say my name or Roscoe's. Speaking of which, where is he?

I carry her to the kitchen, where Ava is fixing breakfast.

"Hey, Avie. Have you seen Roscoe?"

"Upstairs."

"Well, why didn't he wake up when Alicia started crying?"

"I dunno. I just came here to make pancakes."

She winces a little.

"You ok?"

"Yeah, that was just a big kick," Ava chuckles. "At least I know they're still alive after yesterday's scare."

"Well if you need anything, just ask," I say, running straight into Roscoe. He stares at me, dumbfounded.

"Uh…"

"So you didn't hear Alicia crying this morning?' I ask.

"Sorry, little R. Addi and I were up last night planning for our wedding."

"I still don't understand why you wanted to wait a whole year before getting married."

"Everything's gotta be perfect for the girl of my dreams," he chuckles.

"Yeah, and did you happen to forget you have a child?"

"I slept in late, NBD."

"No big deal?! She's starving!"

"You're overreacting. Here, give her to me. I'll take care of her."

No sooner had I put Alicia in his arms, she starts to whine and fuss again.

"Raah," she cries, reaching for me with her stubby arms. "Raah!"

She squirms in Roscoe's arms until he relents and gives her back to me.

"I have to get to school," I groan.

"Well she obviously doesn't want me to hold her, and Addison's still asleep."

"Sorry, but she's not my child," I say. "Hire a sitter if you must but don't just let her cry."

Ava and I go our separate ways after we arrive at school. I head straight to Ace's office. When I open the door, Ace is sitting at his desk, buried in paperwork.

"Rose," he says monotonously.

"Hi, Ace. Whatcha working on?"

"School lock-in."

"How long have you been in here?"

"...like, 4 in the morning?"

"Ace, did you even sleep?"

He sighs.

"I messed up big. I should've known the intercom was on. When have I ever done something this stupid?"

"Um-"

"Don't answer that."

"Ace, everyone makes mistakes."

"Mistakes have consequences. It took a long time to get everyone to trust me again after what I did with the District Council. And now with this rumors of a student uprising-"

"Uprising?"

'Some of the clubs are unhappy with the student council. Some, namely the cheerleaders, think we've been paying special favors to band and glee just because we're friends with Aiden and Jason."

"But that's not true. Those clubs just happened to be more successful because they work hard, right?"

"Of course. But that's not how a lot of the student body sees it. To them, it's only a matter of time until I show my true colors again."

"Oh, Ace. You know that's not who you are anymore. I know you've changed."

"Have I, Rose?"

"Of course. You used to hate Aiden with a burning passion."

"Because I thought he was going to harm you when he was with Jessica."

"But now? You're like an older brother to him.

"That doesn't make up for the fact that I hurt a lot of people back them. Especially you."

"I know."

"I don't know if I can ever truly make things right."

"Ace, you already have. Everything we've been through together showed me that," I say, reaching over and squeezing his hands. He looks up at me and smiles.

"You're too good for me, Rosie. I don't deserve you," he chuckles. His tone was teasing. His words were not. "Well, I've been going to therapy with Aiden recently."

"That's great!"

"The bad news is that it made me dig up old memories."

"...like what?"

"Like when you found out I sold you out to get you to resign. You were really upset. You asked...if whatever we had meant anything to me. And I..."

"-you told me if I really valued anything about what we had, I wouldn't have betrayed you and taken that White House Internship from you."

"Yeah, pretty much. In reality, I didn't value you as much as I should've. I know better now."

"Of course," I whisper. He leans in to kiss me, then stops. "What's wrong?"

"I just...I kinda anticipated someone walking in on us...again. I can't afford to let anything bad happen to your rep because of me."

"Can't afford?" Somehow this phrase sounded suspiciously like the old Ace.

"You know what meant I. I mean, what I meant. Ugh! Can't even put a simple sentence together," he chides himself.

"Ace!" I gasp. "Hun, you can't think like that."

"It's true. I can't do a damn thing right! I can't win an internship, I can't defend myself from my dad. I can't even save myself from being freaking kidnapped!"

"That's because you can't do it all, Ace! Especially not alone. You need to remember that."

"I know, you're right. I've got to get out of this habit. But I'm no innocent like Aiden is."

"That doesn't mean you don't deserve peace of mind," I say. "Everyone can be redeemed."

"Everyone?" he gives me a look.

"...yes," I say uncertainty.

Jason's POV

I feel eyes on me...and for the first time, I don't feel empowered by it. I feel disgusting, dirty even. I made Nick stand on the opposite side of the stage far away from me. But that doesn't stop him from mentally undressing me when no one else looks in our direction. And from where Aiden's sitting, I don't think he can see what's going on. Once practice ends, I can't run out of there fast enough.

"Hey Jason, where's the fire?" I hear Nick taunt from behind me. I ignore him and keep running. My legs become a painful was I panicking Didn't I want to hear the truth from Aiden?

But if Aiden's right, then it means that Katie's been lying to me this whole time. Why would she do that? Did I do something wrong?

"Jace," Aiden wheezes when he catches up to me. "I couldn't see well from where I was sitting. Did anything happen on stage?"

"N-no…"

"Look, Jay...I have something to tell you. Karma has got to be either Katie or Nick."

"Nick I wouldn't be surprised, but Katie? Are you sure she's involved in all this?"

"She's had it out for me since day one. The look on her face when I confronted her told me everything."

"Sweetie, I know Katie makes it no secret she dislikes you-"

"She _hates_ me."

"-but come on. I don't think she would do this."

Aiden scowls at me.

"You don't think she'd do this?"

"Well, she's been my friend longer than I've been dating you." I swear, my mind does not have a filter. Aiden's eyes widen from the comment.

"Excuse me?"

"Babe, I'm not in the mood for another fight."

"Why is she always pushing for you to be with Nick, huh? How come she never wants me around then?"

"Aiden, I think you're overreacting."

"I think you're underreacting. May I remind you that there is a potential psychopath, or maybe two, in your glee club? And one of them plans to do you serious harm?"

"You think I don't know that? Look if word gets out that we're onto Nick, who knows what could happen?"

"Uh, the police get called on his ass?"

"Someone called the cops on Jessica. Twice. She nearly killed you. Twice. Three times, actually."

"Ok, but she was a spoiled rich girl with a superiority complex."

"How is Nick any different? He used to be a star wrestler for God's sake!"

"I didn't see you so willing to back off when you hit me for the same thing!"

The silence that follows is so thick you could cut it with a knife. When I regain my voice, it's shaky and meek.

"I apologized for that."

"That doesn't mean I've forgotten what you did."

"Things are different now."

"Different how? The fact that somehow your friends dictate whether or not you believe me."

"I do believe you, Aiden."

The look on his face tells me he doesn't believe me.

"No, you don't. If you did you would've said something to Katie, not blowing me off, _again_."

"You wanted me to call her out in front of the other members?"

"Yes!"

"Aiden, you don't have any proof that she's behind this. Just trust me on this."

A weird sound bursts from Aiden's mouth. Something between a laugh and a scoff.

"Trust, heh. You use that word a lot. But I bet you don't even know the meaning of the word," he chuckles, bitterly shaking his head.

"Baby, you don't mean that," I try to reach for him, but he pulls back, a hurt look on his face.

"If you want to figure this out on your own, then fine. I can't stop you from doing what you want, as Katie so 'eloquently' pointed out."

"You're...breaking up with me?"

"No. But I think we should take a break from each other."

"Kinda impossible, we live together and sleep in the same bed."

"There's a guest room."

"You're serious?"

"It's rather unhealthy for the two of us to spend so much time in each others' presence all the time. Besides, I wouldn't want to get in the way of your precious glee club."

He says this last part with some snark.

"Babe, wait!"

"Jason, I don't know what you want me to do anymore. I wanna help you because I care about you, but not if you're gonna relapse and protest every step of the way. I'm sorry, but I think we both need some space."

He walks away. I watch his shrinking figure until he burn my eyes.

Katie's POV

I walk up to find Jason on the verge of tears. He sinks to the ground, burying his head in his hands. His shoulders are shaking.

"Jason, are you ok?" I ask, crouching down next to him.

"Aiden," he sobs, "H-he-"

"Broke up with you?" I ask. I hope I didn't sound too excited.

"He wanted a break. I knew t-this would happen. I f-freaking pushed him away when he wanted to help me."

Perfect. I pull Jason into a hug, rubbing his back.

"Aww, Jace. Maybe this is your chance to see that you can be better off without him. Maybe...find someone better."

"Kat, we're taking a break, not completely breaking up. I still kinda live in his house."

"You can stay with me for a while."

"I don't know, Aiden's pretty pissed off at you for some reason."

Well, at least I know Jay's still in the dark about this.

"Listen, I think Aiden's bad news. When he says he wants to take a break, he means he wants to make sure you stay faithful to him only. He doesn't want you to grow out of him I can't believe you're still falling for his act."

"Katie," he sniffs. "Be real with me. Are you in any way affiliated with Karma'sComing123?"

I inhale sharply.

"Jason, how could you even think of accusing your best friend of doing such a thing?"

"I have to know! You know how uncomfortable Nick makes me! And now he's planning to do something horrible. Just tell me. I won't be mad," he pleads.

"Jay, you're getting hysterical. Maybe you need to stay home from school today. Come on, I'll help you pack your things."

School doesn't start until 8 and it's only 6:30, so we have time to get to his place.

We've nearly gotten all of Jason's belongings in his bags when I hear a, "What are you doing?'

"Aiden? What are you doing here?" Jason asks.

"I came back home to sleep some more. What is she doing here?" He glares at me.

"Oh please. You don't get to dictate who Jay gets to have over. Aren't you guys on a break?"

"Exactly. I'm not kicking him out."

"He's staying with me for a while."

"Says who?"

"Says me. Right, Jay?"

"Uh…" Jason looks to the ground.

"Jason, is this really what you want?" Aiden asks him.

"It's only for a little while."

If I had my way it would be forever. Whatever it takes to keep Jay away from his boyfriend.

"Be careful," Aiden mutters.

"I will."

"I love you."

"I love you, too."

I'm a little surprised he didn't put up much of a fight. Oh well. The sooner Jay's away from Aiden the sooner Jay can forget about him and move on.

Ava's POV

"Remember, in the eyes of the rest of the student body, I'm still Nicole," Uma whispers in my ear. "So I'm not sure if we can be as intimate as we want."

I nod in agreement. The last thing I want is to blow Uma's cover, especially after we just found each other again.

"Hold up. Bitch alert at three o'clock," I whisper back to her. Speak of the devil, Patty's making her way towards us,

"Look, uh, I'm...it's was wrong of me to, uh, I shouldn't have-"

"Spit it out, will you?" I snap. Blame my hormones but I really don't care for what this girl has to say.

"Ugh, I'm sorry I hit you in the stomach with my sneaker...and I hope your kids are alright!" she blurts out.

"Uh...they're fine," I say, surprised by Patty apology.

"I just didn't want to be responsible for killing a pair of innocent children. I actually felt guilty because of that. Doesn't change the fact that you're a slut though."

With a huff, she flounces away.

"Aaand there's the Patty we all know and love," I remark sarcastically, causing Uma to laugh. "I love your laugh."

"I love your face," Uma giggles, holding it in her hands and kissing me.

"What happened to no intimacy?" I chuckle.

"I said too much intimacy, silly. I can still hug and kiss you if I want."

She tries to hug me but my bump gets in the way.

"Well, a few things might get in the way of that," I laugh. We hear Rose and Ace's voices from down the hall.

"Your blood pressure is crazy high. I don't want you to have a stroke," Rose comments. Ace does indeed look like he's ready to pop a vein or two.

"I'm fine, just a little lightheaded from the quick power nap," Ace mumbles somewhat incoherently. He does not look in good shape. He stumbles, but Rose holds him steady.

"Come on, baby. Let me take you to the nurse."

"Fine. But she's probably just gonna give me a lollipop or something."

"They're such a cute couple," Uma comments.

"Not as cute as us," I joke. Uma blushes.

"I'm surprised you still consider us a couple."

"I thought I stopped loving you, but I never did. Uma, I need you. Now more than ever."

"I know."


	10. When I Was Your Man

**BlackCanary98: I feel bad for them too. As to how long they'll stay like this, time will tell. Also, yeah, Ace seems to be under a lot of stress with managing his work and figuring out what he wants to do in life.**

Nick's POV

"So, they broke up?" I ask. This was almost too easy.

"Well, Jason calls it 'taking a break' from each other, but yeah," Katie answers right next to me. "I managed to get him to move out of Aiden's place and in with me."

"I think some time apart will do everyone good," I say.

"But he looks so depressed now. I wish there was something we could do to cheer him up," she laments. I have a few suggestions, but I'm pretty sure Jason hates the mere sight of me. Oh well, just need to count off the days until I'll finally be able to have him all to myself.

"Look, there he is now," I point out. Sure enough, he's slowly trudging down the hallways, his eyes to the ground and his books hugged close to his chest.

"Jason, hi!" Katie greets him. He musters up a small grin when he sees her. He freezes when he sees me.

"Hey, Jason," I say.

"Hey," he mutters, his voice trembling a little. What's he acting so scared for?

"I heard about what happened between you and Aiden."

"Of course you did," he scoffs.

"I'm so sorry he treated you that way," I say, He looks up at me with suspicion and surprise.

"W-what?" he stammers. "I...ok, I guess. This doesn't change things between us though."

"I think you just need some time to cool down while the pain is still fresh. We can go out later tonight."

Jason shakes his head.

"Oh, no. I remember the last time I went out with the two of you," he refuses. "I ended up blackout drunk and Nick kissed me."

"Last time I checked," I say. "You got drunk and kissed me. You probably aren't remembering correctly.

"I remember…" he hisses.

Of course he does. Sure, I initiated the kiss, but he gave into it. He didn't fight back. He obviously liked it.

"Well, in light of what's happened recently...I'm sorry. For everything," I apologize. "I was a major ass to you since I got here and made you very uncomfortable. I hope you can forgive me."

Jason looks into my eyes, trying to determine if I'm being truthful or not. Thankfully, he gives me a suspicious nod and holds out his hand.

"If I find out you're lying to me, I'll break every bone in your body," he warns me. Like he could ever take me on. I smile graciously and shake his hand. Katie looks all too ecstatic.

"Look at the two of you already being friends!" she gushes.

"I wouldn't go that far," Jason says suddenly. "I still don't trust you as far as I can throw you."

For now…

We see Aiden pass us in the hallway, talking with Ace.

"Rose says we should go see a basketball game together," Ace says. "She says it'll take our minds off of stuff."

"What time?" Aiden asks nonchalantly. There's not a single hint of remorse in his voice. He doesn't even sound remotely sad. Hmph. I always knew he didn't deserve Jason.

"Looks like someone's already moved on," Katie snorts.

"I'm sure...that there's a reasonable explanation for this," Jay mutters quietly. "They're friends. They hang out all the time. Besides, Ace has a girlfriend whom he's seriously committed to."

"Jace, you don't have to keep making excuses for his behavior," I tell him.

"I'm not-"

"Maybe we'll go to a game and show them what for!" Katie declares.

"But I don't want to-"

"Then it's settled. We'll go to the game tonight."

"Guys-"

"I'll pick everyone up in my car at 6."

"GUYS! They can hear you!" Jason snaps. Apparently, Ace and Aiden weren't out of earshot. Ace gives us a weird look, while Aiden glares at us.

"This isn't over," he mouths.

"I think it is. For you," I mouth back. Aiden rolls his eyes and walks away with Ace.

"Asians," Katie mutters, obviously referencing Aiden and Ace's respective Chinese and Filipino heritage. "So stuck up."

"Hey, Aiden is not stuck up," Jason interrupts. "He's quite humble about his accomplishments."

"Forget about him!" Katie blurts out. "I don't mean to sound harsh, but you can't move on if you constantly have him on your mind."

"But I don't want to move on. He just...it was too much for him dealing with me for so long. He wanted a break."

His blue eyes start to water a litte. Someday, I'll be able to wipe every last tear from his pretty face and hold him tight until he knows everything'll be alright.

"If he wants to make you feel like a burden to him, he doesn't deserve you Jace. Now come on. We'll be late to class if we keep dawdling."

Jason reluctantly drags his feet behind us.

"So, how long do you think he'll be like this?" I ask Katie.

"Well, he's probably going through the seven stages of grief."

"I thought that only applied to death?"

"It works for heartbreak too. Anyway, I think he's still in the shock and denial phase."

"And...when will he no longer be in shock and denial?"

"Time will tell…"

It better tell soon, otherwise my plan is going to be a lot harder. I need to get Jason to warm up to me, and quickly.

"Hey, Nick," Katie says suddenly.

"Yeah?"

"What made you attracted to Jason in the first place?"

Pretty much everything about him. His dazzling eyes, his infectious smile, the tempting sway of his hips when he walks. Mmm, getting slightly aroused thinking of him.But now's not the time to think with the wrong head.

"I've seen him around during performances before I transfered. I guess I fell for him seeing him dance on stage. Of course, I couldn't go talk to him, 'cause of Hearst and their rivalry with Lakeside."

Ace's POV

"I know heartbreak hurts, but I didn't think Jay would stoop this low so quickly," I say. "Jealousy is an ugly look on everyone."

"I didn't realize he'd be so hurt by it. But I have to stand by my decision. If I take him back now, it'll just be the same old thing," Aiden mumbles. "Of course he went straight back to his friends. I'll be damned if I let them turn Jay against me."

"It's fine to take a break in a relationship sometimes," I tell him. "Especially if you're trying to avoid a messy break up. It gives you a chance to grow outside of your partner and explore other options."

"Other options?" he asks skeptically.

"I don't mean randomly hook-up with strangers. Just, spend some time with people you're familiar with. People that make you happy. Like your friends."

"Like you?"

"Yeah."

"Thanks, I guess."

"No problem, kiddo," I chuckle, giving him a friendly punch in the shoulder.

"You laugh now because you're older than me by mere months, but when you're 30 and I'm still 29, we'll see who'll still be laughing."

"Yeah, me. 'Cause I'll be a successful CEO or a politician...or something." my voice trails off. Those were my old dreams. Now, I'm not sure what I want. And it's freaking me out.

I need to make a decision by college signing day about where I'm headed after graduation. I've been accepted to Harvard, Yale, Princeton, Stanford, the university of Chicago, and Cornell University. Thankfully, Rose got into nearly as many schools as I did, so that makes the choosing process a little easier since we've planned to go to the same college.

"Uh, Ace?" Aiden says, waving a hand in front of my face. "You kinda zoned out there for a moment."

"I...I did? Well, sorry about that," I say apologetically. Damn, I thought I stopped doing that.

"Should we still go to the game?" he asks. "Especially since-"

"We aren't going to let the three of them and their nonsense ruin our fun," I state. "Screw all of them."

"Uh, but not Jason, right?"

"Sure…"

Frankly, I had no idea why Jason would even think of spending time with people who obviously don't approve of who he's in a relationship with. Especially since one of them knows their history.

Damn. The kid's the second youngest in our group after Rose, and I'm the second oldest after Wes. I can't help but take him under my wing. He didn't deserve anything that's happened to him in the past year. He definitely doesn't deserve to be treated the way Jason did when he tried to tell him the truth about his friends. I hope Jay knows what he's getting into. Aiden's boyfriend or not, I won't hesitate to take action if he hurts Aiden.

Ava's POV

Apparently, Patty's apology meant nothing to her, because she's back to her bitchy self when we get to gym class. Uma lets go of my hand before we open the doors. Things could turn out pretty badly if people found out that she's not really Nicole Blake. I just hope the real Nicole continues to cover for Uma at Statton.

"We're not going to have a repeat of last week, are we, Edwards?" the coach demands. I smirk at him and produce a doctor's note. (Thank you, Dr. Brinkwater!) Call me petty, but if I can't have revenge with my fists, my words work just as well. So I decide to get under his skin, by playing up the slut he thinks I am. Not a perfect idea, but at least I can't get suspended for it.

"No, I don't think we are gonna have a problem," I say. "As you can see, I'm feeling a bit under the weather. I don't think I'll be able to participate for a few months. I kinda have this 9 month affliction. It kinda makes my tummy grow, my ass start to swell and my, *ahem, mammary glands tend to lacta-"

"Alright, that's enough!" he snarls. "Just sit your ass down before I write you up!"

He scoffs, shaking his head and turning away. Uma can barely hide her giggles.

"He looked so mad," she snickers.

"He wants to treat me like a whore, I'll show him how one acts," I say firmly.

"Well, I better get changed. You gonna be ok by yourself?" she asks.

"Yep, bye Um- er, Nicole."

"Bye, Avie." she says with a wink.

"Well, well, well," I hear a familiar voice behind me. I see her slender legs slide in next to me. "If it isn't Miss '16 and Pregnant.'"

"I'm 18, dipshit, get it right. And I guess your apology wasn't sincere at all," I sneer.

"Whatever. I got suspended from the cheerleading squad because of you."

"No one asked you to launch a sneaker at my belly. You deserved it."

Patty scoffs and looks away. In silence, we watch the gym class go on.

"Ugh, this gym stink is making me nauseous," she complains.

"It reeks of body odor all the time. Why is today any different?"

"Just. Shut. Up. You're giving me a headache," she groans. I take a closer look at her, and notice that her face is tinged green. She burps sickly.

"Uh, are you-"

"Don't talk to me!" she snaps before belching again. "Oh god…*URP!* Out of my damn way!"

She pushes past me, her hands over her mouth. I can't help but follow her into the bathroom.

Morning Sickness?

The retching sounds I hear from one of the stalls give me my answer. She jumps when she comes out of the stall.

"My, have the tables turned," I say, smiling wickedly.

"You don't know a damn thing. I just got food poisoning."

"I call bullshit. If you had food poisoning you'd be much worse."

"I suppose you know from experience," she sneers.

"How long do you think it'll be before you start to show?" I ask, patting her currently slim stomach.

"Screw you," she hisses, slapping my hand away.

"Ooh, definitely feels like a baby or two in there. Is it a girl? I hope it's not a girl. I'd hate for my kids to grow up with a bitch like you."

"SHUT UP! I am NOT pregnant, you…*URP!* Uggh!"

She rushes back into the stall and resumes her regurgitating.

"Y'know, speaking from experience, morning sickness is usually the first signs of pregnancy."

"Get the hell out of here."

"Oh, trust me. I'm not going anywhere. As you've probably heard, what goes around comes around, and I think you got what's coming to you."

"Ok, fine. Maybe I could be pregnant. But at least I'd have a rich baby daddy. I'd be a milf."

"You are seriously deluded. I can't believe you think you have your fairytale life. I'm sure you won't be saying that when that size 0 waistline you've got balloons up until you look like a walking blimp. You won't be saying that when you have to keep replacing your shirts because your boobs keep leaking with the milk you'll have to feed your baby with for years. You definitely won't say that when you can't tell which end those gas bubbles in your stomach are going, so you end up embarrassing yourself in front of all your friends, if you'll still have friends by the time everyone finds out. And don't even get me started about school. I don't even know if I'll graduate high school, let alone get to college. My life will never be the same, and neither will yours."

I trail off when I notice her crying. Damn, I think I went a little too far.

"Y-you're such a bitch," she sniffs. "If you weren't pregnant I would've killed you by now."

"If I had my way I wouldn't even be pregnant. A guy forced himself on me, alright? So no, I wasn't getting freaky in the sheets with some creep by choice."

That's the first time I've vocally acknowledged the fact. I leave the bathroom before she has a chance to speak.

Jason's POV

It's been at least eight hours, but the pain is still fresh. Why am I feeling this way? I bet Aiden hasn't even thought of me all day? What if he's already moved on from me?

Ok. I need to get a goddamn grip. I am 18 fucking years old. I'm legally and adult, not some 13 year old edgelord. We're just on break. Sooner or later, Aiden will come back, and thing's will go back to normal. Normalish. As normal as they can get. For now, I just have to endure this basketball game with Nick and Katie.

What's with Nick's sudden 180 turn in personality? Is he trying to butter me up and get me to lower my guard. I'd hate to admit it, but it's kinda working. He'd been nothing but nice to me all day, never trying to cop a feel or assault me. Maybe he has changed. Or maybe scallops will fly out of my pants.

"We're here," Nick announces. We all get out of the car and head to the ticket booth.

"How did you get tickets on such short notice?" Katie asks.

"I know a guy," Nick answers cryptically. "Let's go get some snacks."

"I'll get them," Katie offers. "The two of you can go find our seats."

She flounces off, leaving me with Nick. To my surprise, he says nothing as we find our seats

"Oh for the love of…" I hear him grumble. I look up, and Aiden and Ace are seated two rows in front of us. They turn around and notice us. Ace whispers something to Aiden, and he nods. The latter gets up and walks away. Once Aiden is out of earshot, Ace narrows his eyes at the two of us.

"What are you guys doing here?" He demands.

"I'd ask you the same thing, Ace," I retort.

"Well, Aiden was feeling a little down after what happened this morning, so Rose decided a little outing between us guys would cheer him. To me it seems like you're just here to make him jealous."

"I would never do that. We just happened to come to the same game. And since when do you OR Aiden have any interest whatsoever in sports?"

"Rose suggested it, not me."

Aiden comes back with an armload of food.

"I wasn't sure what you wanted, so I got a bunch of random stuff," he says, struggling to hold everything in his arms. Ace reaches out and holds his arms steady, to which Aiden smiles graciously. I ignore the tiny twinge of envy that comes up.

Katie comes back with our food and we settle down. The game starts. I don't think anyone around here is really invested in it though. Nick's on his phone, Katie's staring into space, and Ace and Aiden are too busy talking. Suddenly, I hear a lot of cheering and screaming.

"Look at the screen," Nick points out. The kiss cam is on, and it's focused on...Ace and Aiden?!

The two of them look at each other, then look all around them. Ace rolls his eyes and gives him a small peck on the cheek.

"Are you happy now?" He asks. Aiden blushes and they both laugh at the moment.

"That's just cruel," Katie chides. "He says he wants a break so he can go and kiss another man. Shameful."

"It was just a casual kiss on the cheek, dude. I'm sure it wasn't anything serious."

"Sure, you say that now, but wait until they start having more 'casual' kisses and see where that leads you."

"Hey, Aiden is not a cheater," I growl.

"Let's just watch the game," she says in exasperation.

At this point, absolutely no one is paying attention. Somewhere along the line, Aiden leaves to use the restroom. Then the cheering starts up again.

"Oh my God!" Katie gasps. "Look!"

I look up at the screen, and Nick and I were on it! He turns to me.

"Nick...I can't...Aiden...he--"

"If it's ok for him to kiss someone else while on break, why not you?"

"It just feels wrong, like I'm being unfaithful to him."

"Come on, just this once. He won't even be here to witness it."

But Ace will…

All around us, the crowd is chanting, "Kiss! Kiss!"

"Fine. But just a kiss on the cheek," I say. I lean in...when suddenly he turns and our lips meet! He cups my cheek and runs his hands through my hair. When he pulls away, my face is a mask of humiliation and shame.

"Satisfied?" He has the audacity to ask. I sit in silence for the rest of the game.

Once the game ends, Ace corners me.

"Jason, what the hell is wrong with you?"

"I didn't know he was going to do that!"

"I can't believe you let him kiss you on the lips!"

"You kissed Aiden," I retort.

"On the cheek. Why didn't you push him off?"

"I don't know, I was shocked when he did it. What could I have done?"

Ace shakes his head.

"Count yourself lucky Aiden didn't see this. It's a wonder you still have his trust. You have quite a bit to think about."

"I know, and I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize to me. Apologize to your boyfriend. He's the one you should talk to."

With that, he walks away, muttering to himself. Oh, man...I can't believe I let Nick kiss me again. And this time I was sober! I got to find a way to fix things with Aiden before it gets worse.


	11. How to Save a Life

**BlackCanary98: Nick doesn't seem to have any sense of boundaries when it comes to Jason, does he? Or was briefly mentioned that Nick has a history of people rejecting him, each rejection making him more volatile than the last until he got to Jason. Here he found a sweet boy with a few insecurities...and he's taken. Naturally Nick's pissed. As you'll see in this chapter Karma'sComing123 wasn't making empty threats. And yes, it is poetic justice for Patty isn't it. Nothing too horrible will happen to her, although I will say she's not having just a baby or two...BTW, the song title is from Bruno Mars. Glad you caught the reference.**

Rose's POV

"Hey, sweetie," I greet my boyfriend with a kiss on the lips. "How was the basketball game?"

"It wasn't...really our thing. But we had fun though."

"I heard you and Aiden got on the kiss cam," I laugh. I got an old friend to make sure everything went well. Ace smirks.

"It was a platonic, brief peck on the cheek. I can report that after that encounter I am solely and exclusively into beautiful curvy girls with pink hair," he states, twirling me around and snaking an arm around my waist. "Phew, I'm exhausted."

He flops on the couch, taking me down with him.

"I ordered takeout. I wanna watch the latest episode of The Junior," I say excitedly.

"The only reason that show got good was because that Beau Han guy tried to kill Sonia in a burning house," he comments. "And now he's framed her for arson."

"Yeah, well I want to know how she plans to take Beau down."

"I don't trust that Nathan guy she's dating. If he's affiliated with Beau and the Alphas, there's gonna be nothing but trouble."

"Not every rich kid is evil, Ace," I remind him. "You of all people should know that."

"Hmm...let's see. How about Claire, Becca, Sebastian, Max, Kara, Asher-"

"Sebastian and Becca are redeemed characters."

"Whatever. Wait till Nathan stabs Sonia in the back," he mutters. "After everything they've been through together…"

He frowns. Our takeout arrives before I can say anything. I put The Junior and the TV and we snuggle up on the couch to watch it.

"Oh my God, Tyler!" I gasp. "How could he just turn on his friends and girlfriend of three years. And to take the side of those...Alphas! We trusted you, Kassidy!"

"You shouldn't have. And you shouldn't have trusted Nathan. I told you he was going to turn on her. I can't believe he had the nerve to take her to bed, too!" Ace fumes.

"You seem a bit worked up, sweetie. Is everything ok?" I ask.

"It's just some stuff I'm thinking about, Rosie," he sighs.

"What happened at the game?"

"...Jay kissed another dude."

"What?!"

"He says the guy came on to him. I want to believe him, but he definitely initiated the kiss."

"What did Aiden say?"

"He was in the bathroom when it happened. I hope. I couldn't bring myself to tell him. I'll just hope Jason will come clean."

"Well, he's been awfully quiet lately. Do you think it has something to do with the fact that Aiden's birthday is coming up in a few weeks?"

"I completely forgot," Ace admits sheepishly. "I guess that was a bad time to break for those two."

"Anything else you seemed to have forgotten?" I ask, concerned for my boyfriend's mental health.

"Shit…" he mutters. "Our anniversary was a month ago, your birthday isn't until April...uh...oh no."

"What?"

"My term paper for US Government! It's due tomorrow!" he exclaims suddenly. "I can't believe it slipped my mind. The teacher assigned this weeks ago!"

"Oh, Ace. If I'd known I wouldn't have made you go to the game."

"No, no. I'm usually on top of things. Damn, I'm slipping," he groans, looking very distressed. He covers his face with his hands, sighing heavily. "God I'm so stupid!"

I put my small hands on his larger ones and pull them from his face.

"Hey, look at me," I say softly. "I'll help you write your term paper. We can do this together. Just like when we had one day to win the election? We can do the same in half that time."  
"I don't even know if I have it in me anymore, Rosie," Ace mutters. "I think I've lost my spark for a very long time."

"Don't say that, sweetie. Of course you've always had it. You just...used it for the wrong reasons. Come on. Let's finish our dinner and get to work."

I gently kiss his lips, caressing his neck and back. He wraps his arms around my waist and kisses me back. He smirks at me.

"What happened to 'let's finish our dinner and get to work'?" he teases, biting my lower lip.

"I am finishing dinner," I whisper. "It's only seven p.m... Ace, you must be so hot in that sweater. Let me help you cool your head down a little."

Pretty soon, we're heavily making out on the couch. He trails his lips down my neck, my collarbone, until he hovers over my chest.

"Do you want to?" he asks.

"Just don't leave any marks like you did the last time. Do you know how embarrassing it was to explain to my dad that a rash on my neck was really a hickey?"

"I guess I got a little carried away…"

"I had to wear a turtleneck for days," I pretend to pout. "I guess now you can make it up to me."

"My pleasure…"

He starts unbuttoning my pink blouse, gazing at my lacy black bra.

"Surprised?"

"You...got a new one this time. It's all black instead if hot pink...Not that I'm complaining."

So we got pretty frisky with each other, so it came as a surprise when someone opens the door on us in such a compromising position. Thank goodness, it's only Ava.

"Uh…"she says. "Am I interrupting something?"

Yeah, pretty awkward having your best friend walk in on you and your boyfriend both half naked and he's practically smothered in your chest. Ace and I quickly cover ourselves up, blushing madly.

"Nothing important! God, you scared us, Ava," I wheeze. "What's up?"

"I'm starving, that's what's up," she says. "I swear I ate hours ago but it feels like I haven't eaten all day."

"Well, you are eating for three people, so you'd need to eat a lot more than normal."

"I know...it just sucks being hungry all the time…" she sighs. "Well, I'm heading up to my room. You guys can keep...doing you."

This makes Ace and I blush again. Ava laughs and heads upstairs.

"I think we should get started on that term paper," I say sheepishly. Ace nods and takes out his laptop. "So, what's the topic?"

"The constitution, specifically the amendments. I have to pick a few of them and talk about their relevance to today."

"Well, which ones are you going to choose?"

"I dunno. Any ideas?"

"I have some books in my room," I say. Ace smirks at me.

"Is this just an excuse to get me in your room?"

"I'm serious! Come on!" I insist. Ace laughs as I pull him upstairs. So we did research (for real, I swear) and Ace gets started on his term paper. Before long, I feel myself nodding off. I stifle a yawn, but Ace notices me.

"Go to sleep, Rosie. I'll be fine," he says, rubbing my back.

"I want to help," I whine. "I just need an energy drink or something. I'll brew a coffee."

"Baby, it's 1 in the morning."

"So?"

Ace chuckles and shakes his head.

"Fine. But if you yawn again, you're going to sleep."

I rush downstairs into the kitchen. I'm busy brewing the coffee when I hear a door slam shut.

"Roscoe?" I call out. No answer. "Come on, Roscoe, this isn't funny. Is that you?"

"Who said that?" I hear Roscoe's voice from upstairs. I start to panic. If that's not Roscoe, who's there?!

I pick up a rolling pin and creep towards the foyer. I turn on the lights, ready to swing at the intruder when Ava shrieks.

"It's me, Rose!"

She hold up her arms, one hand holding a large bag of McDonald's?

"Ava, what are you doing up?"

"I couldn't sleep. Plus I just had this sudden craving for something greasy and sweet at the same time. I may have gone a bit overboard."

I peer into the bag.

"It's half empty!"

"I got hungry along the way," she giggles, patting her round stomach. She definitely looks like she's swallowed a watermelon or too. She's gotten quite big for 6 months gestation. "Oof! That was a big kick. I guess they're still hungry after the two double cheeseburgers, fries, and two vanilla shakes. But I feel like I'm gonna pop if I eat anymore."

My eyes widen.

"You ate all that at once?"

"Well, I dipped the fries in the shake, then put them on my burgers, so…"

"Eww!"

"You think that's bad, you should see the other weird ways I've combined food. Lets see-"

"No, I don't want to know!" I laugh, covering my ears. Ava chuckles appreciatively and walks past me.

I go my own separate way into my own room. Ace seems to be nodding off to sleep. I try to pull his laptop away so he can get some rest but he holds on to it.

"You're sleepy, Ace," I point out.

"I was just resting my eyes," he says defensively. "You gonna share some of that coffee?"

"Fine. But twenty more minutes and we're going to bed."

"But Rose-"

"I know you think you can run on no hours of sleep, but look. You're almost done. You can conclude the paper tomorrow and we'll edit together. Ok?"

Ace sighs before nodding at me. He puts the laptop on my dresser and gets into the bed with me.

Ace's POV

I wait until Rose is sound asleep before I sneak out of bed. She shifts a little. I hold my breath...until she goes back to sleeping peacefully. I grab my laptop and head downstairs. I work late into the night. When it's like 4 in the morning, I've printed out the paper.

It was then that I finally allow myself to sleep. When I wake up, Rose is standing over me, quite pissed.

"Uh...morning, beautiful!"

"Ace, what time did you go to bed?"

"See, I uh...had to use the bathroom and I didn't want to wake you so I just slept on the couch."

"And why is your laptop with you?"

"Uh…"

"I'm glad I woke you at 7 a.m."

"You did what now?! School starts at 8! Did you seriously make me oversleep!?"

"I know. We'll make it to school on time. Come on. At least you got the paper done."

"I didn't even get to revise it a third time-"

"Too bad, we're leaving!"

I grudgingly get ready and wait in the car for Rose. Minutes later, she taps on my window.

"Yes?"

"We're taking my motorcycle," she says.

"I can drive. It's way more comfortable."

"Bartholomew de la Cruz, you are in no condition to be driving!" She scolds, putting her hands on her hips.

"You sound like my mom. I'll be fine."

"Ace…"

"I'm pretty sure you've seen me after an all nighter. This is no different."

She sighs, "Why must you be so difficult?"

She gets in the car next to me and puts on her seatbelt with a pout. I smile and kiss her on the cheek. The drive goes mostly smoothly. That's when I feel my eyes start to droop. Must be sleep inertia. I'll be fine...I hope. I blink rapidly to try and get rid of the feeling. That actually made things worse. I shake my head. Rose looks at me with concern.

"I'm fine, Rosie," I say before she can comment. I try to focus on the road again. We're nearing the school parking lot.

"Ace, look out!" She cries out suddenly. I turn and see a car has ran a red light, hurtling towards us. I tank the steering wheel in an attempt to swerve away, but the car hits Rose's side head on. I recoil from the impact and shield my eyes from the flying debris.

"Rose!" I yell. When the smoke clears, she's slumped over the dashboard. She's covered in blood and glass. "Rose! Oh, God no!"

I gently shake her. She moans.

"Ace…" she whispers. "T-this is not your fault."

"Rose, I'm so sorry! I should be more careful... should've listened to you more."

"It hurts, Ace." Tears start welling in her eyes. She starts crying a little.

"I'll call 911! Just stay with me, Rose."

"I'll try…"

I hop out of the care and start dialing for an ambulance. Meanwhile, the other driver stomps out of his car, followed by a smaller girl. She gasps when she sees the damage.

"I told you running a red light was a bad idea, Nick!" She says sternly. Nick turns around and glares at the girl, causing her to shrink back.

"He shouldn't have been moving so slowly," Nick scoffs.

"Maybe you should've kept your hands to yourself, huh Nick?" I challenge, remembering him from last night's game.

"Hey, Jason pretty much asked for whatever happened between us. And what happened is none of your business. Speaking of which, don't you have your ball and chain to attend to?"

"Ball and chain? Wha- Don't speak about Rose like that!" I snap. Nick meanders over to Rose's side to look at her.

"Damn, she's a pretty thing," he whistles, eying her body. "If I wasn't already pursuing someone, I'd definitely go for her."

"Get the hell away from her!" I yell, advancing towards him. Nick chuckles, stepping back.

"Relax, Jason's the only guy for me," he sneers. "Besides, the only good a chunky chick like her could do is to please a man."

"He and Aiden belong together and you know it," I say, ignoring the insult he just threw at my girlfriend.

"Who's Aiden? Never heard of him!" he guffaws. "At least that's how it'll be when I'm through with him!"

The ambulance arrived to take Rose away. They ask if I need medical assistance as well. I decline.

"Please do everything you can for her," I beg. The paramedics nod and the ambulance drives away. I'm torn between following Rose to the hospital and warning Aiden about Nick's threat I decide to send him a text and hope he gets it. Then I have to wait for my insurance company to take care of my care. I just hope I'm not too late before I get to Rose.

Katie's POV

I swear, its like Jason completely shut down after last night. Didn't he originally agree to this kiss? Why is he so upset? He ran straight to the guest room and locked the door when we got home. I could hear soft sniffling from inside.

"Jace, it was just a kiss," I say. "It's not like he tried to sleep with you or anything."

Jay doesn't respond. His eyes are to the ground at his feet.

"You should at least try to eat something," I press, holding a banana out to him. He looks at it, wrinkling his nose at the sight.

"I'm not hungry," I barely hear him mutter. He's clearly lying, but I don't know how to convince him to eat.

"Sure, but don't say anything when your stomach starts rumbling loudly in the middle of class because you chose to be stubborn," I say, trying reverse psychology. Jason shrugs and heads out the door.

He's mostly quiet on the ride to school. Nick texted me and said he was in some car accident and was running late. Damn. He retreats to the boy's bathroom as soon as we arrive at school. Oh well. I have to catch up with some of my friends. I meet up with Patty in the girl's locker room. She pulls me into a stall.

"Look, I'm about to tell you something shocking, ad I don't need it getting around school, got that?" She hisses.

I nod, unsure of what she was going to tell me.

"What's up?'' I ask nonchalantly.

"I think...I might...I could be pregnant."

This makes me gasp. Patty shushes me angrily.

"Do you want the school to know that?!" She demands. "I don't know for sure. I'm taking a test to verify."

"When's the last time you...um...you know?"

"Slept with a guy? There was that casual hook up with some dude from Hearst 2 months ago, but I'm almost 100 percent certain we used protection...I hope. My test is done, let's see the results. Fingers crossed for a negative…"

We wait for the results to slowly appear...and they're positive. Patty gasps, backing up against the wall of the stall.

"Patty…"

"There must be some mistake! I can't be pregnant! I could just be bloated."

She lifts up her stomach. I reach out to feel it. Where it is usually slim and soft, it is now firm and slightly curved.

"What are you going to do?"

"What CAN I do?!"

"Isn't there another pregnant girl in the school?"

She narrows her eyes at me.

"That little slut Ava? No way. She made fun of me yesterday. Besides, I just made a mistake. Haven't you noticed she only showed up about a month ago? Who knows what she's been getting into?"

"Well, if there's anyone who'd understand what you're going through, its her."

"My mom's gonna kill me!"

"I'm sure it'll be fine.

"Whatever," she grumbles. "Just don't tell anyone about this."

"You have my word."

Frankly, I could care less about what Patty chooses to do. I mean , we hang out sometimes when Jason's not around, but in the end, she has her life and I have mine.

Speaking of which, I better get to class.

Jason is the last person to drag himself into the classroom just before the late bell. He sits down next to me and puts his head down. Luckily, we sit far enough from the teacher so he won't notice.

"Psst! Jay!" I whisper. He barely lifts his head as I pass him a note.

K: You feeling alright, Jace?  
J: I want to freaking die.  
K: Why, because of what happened last night?"  
J: He tricked me! He got me to agree to a cheek kiss then he went for a mouth kiss! His hands were all over me and he even tried to force his tongue down my throat!  
K: It's not the end of the world, Jason. I'm sure he didn't mean anything bad by it.  
J: I have a boyfriend!  
K: Had. You had a boyfriend.

"Kaitlyn, Jason. Is there something you'd like to share with the class?" The teacher demands, walking up and snatches it from Jason's hands before he can reply. "I hope you won't mind if I read this aloud."

And so he does. The rest of the class is snickering. Jay's face goes dark.

"Mr. Sherman, I was the person who started sending the notes," I admit.

"I see, Coleman. And what do you have to say for yourself, Parker?"

Jay opens his mouth to speak, but a loud growling sound from his stomach interrupts him. I warned him. He gets up suddenly and bolts.

"Jay, wait!" I try to call after him. But he's already gone. There has to be some way to get Jason to feel better…

Jason's POV

I don't know what happened after last night, but when I woke up this morning, it felt like there was a huge weight of guilt on my chest. I felt very sick after what Nick did to me. It was bad enough when I was drunk and could barely remember anything. But now he did it when I was conscious and sober. What if Aiden saw? What if he finds out? Then it'll definitely be over between us.

After I pretty much humiliated myself in class, I found myself wandering towards the music room. The place is a mess with sheet music strewn everywhere chairs out of place...and the grand piano where Aiden would sit to play...destroyed. Even the wall is spray painted with, the words Karma's a bitch isn't it, Zhou? Aiden's standing in the middle of if all, looking absolutely shattered. A part of me wants to walk up to him and comfort him, but another part of me thinks he needs space to process this. I turn to leave when he spots me. We lock eyes for a painful moment before he turns away from me.

"Ai-"

"I'm not changing my mind, Jason," he says coldly. "I'll come back when I'm ready."

"But-"

"Just go!" his voice threatens to crack. "Just...give it more time."

I have no choice but to oblige and leave him be.

An hour if wandering later, Katie texts me and tells me to meet her at the auditorium during lunch.

"I'm not really in the mood, Katie, so-"

"SURPRISE!" the other glee members pip out of their hiding spots.

"It's not my birthday," I say in confusion.

"No, silly! We're celebrating all the hard work you've put into glee club," Katie says, giving me a hug. "Everyone loves you, Jason. I hope you remember that."

"Almost everyone…" I mutter, thinking of Aiden.

"At least the people who actually care about you do," I hear Nick's voice from behind me. I can't move. My body is frozen.

"What do you want?" I whisper.

"Jace, I had no idea you were uncomfortable with what happened last night. I swear I thought I heard someone calling my name and I turned," he says sadly. "I would've never tried anything like that."

Yeah, right.

"Whatever. Let's start practice since everyone's already here."

"Actually we're having a pizza party to celebrate," Katie says, picking up a box. "Have a slice!"

"I'd rather swallow oil."

Truth is, I'm starving. But after all the calories ingested at the basketball game, I better take it easy. I can't have Aiden think I've let myself go. Then he's never gonna take me back and my dad will be right about me.

"It's from this really good pizzeria nearby…"

My stomach growls loudly. It feels like my gut's starting to digest itself it's that painful.

"I'm...not really feeling the pizza right now. But thanks anyway."

"Are you sure you don't want anything else? Some wings, maybe."

Painful twinge.

"N-no…" I feel my surroundings start to get fuzzy again. My legs give out on me, but Nick catches me before I hit the ground.

"Whoa, there. Try not to pass out on us again, Jace," he says. "I'm gonna take him to the nurse."

I'm too weak to argue. He lifts me up bridal style and carries me to the nurse.

"Why are you doing this?" I ask weakly. "What did I do to you?"

"It has nothing to do with you...It's just...well, I've tried to deny my feelings for you, but I can't. I let my jealousy take over and I ended up hurting you."

"I wasn't the only person you hurt."

"I know…"

Hmm...Nick's playing nice again. Perhaps I can use this to my advantage. And well...I hope Aiden won't be too upset with me.

"I suppose...I can forgive you."

He looks surprised by this.

"R-really?"

"I mean, you can't help how you feel about someone…" I say, looking into his eyes. "And besides, you're uh...very attractive."

"Oh, Jay…" he says softly. Suddenly I feel myself falling and hit the nurse's bed hard.

"Ow! What was that for?!"

"You're cute, Jason," he chuckles, caressing my cheek. "But you're gonna have to do better than that to fool me."

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

He laughs, his left hand stroking my hair, my face, then my neck. He leans in close.

"Jason. I like you, but I am not a person to be fucked with. Don't play dumb."

His grip becomes tighter on me. Fuck, this is what Aiden was warning me about! And I didn't listen!

"W-where's the nurse?"

"Must be out today. Oh well. And I wouldn't try to yell for help if I were you. Trust me, you wouldn't like me if I got angry."

"Don't hurt me!"

"Why would I hurt you? I just want to show you how much I care about you."

"...S-stop…" I protest weakly. I didn't have the strength to push him back. I remember feeling a draft come over my body before I black out.

Aiden's POV

"Why am I being called into the principal's office?" I ask Ava. She was the only one who was available when I saw the damage to the music room. I have a wild guess as to who did this.

"I dunno, maybe they need a witness or something," she remarks. She's struggling to catch up, her extended girth slowing her down. So I slow my pace so she catches up.

"So, how are the twins doing?" I ask.

"Sometimes it's like the invasion of the body snatchers, and the two hosts are fighting for sole reign of my uterus," she laughs. "But at least they're both healthy. I'm kinda worried about having an early birth, though. There I times where I feel like I'm about to give birth, but turns out it's a false alarm."

"Damn, makes me glad I'm not a woman. No offense."

"None taken."

"What are you going to name them?"

"I haven't thought about that...Heh, there's no way I'm naming them after my family...or their father. Maybe- ow!"

"You ok?"

"Kicking, as usual."

We enter the principal's office, and to my surprise, my parents are there too!

"Mom? Dad? What's going on?"

"They're suspending you, Aiden," my mom says. "Apparently they got an anonymous tip that you trashed the music room."

"But I'd never do that!" I protest.

"That's what we've been saying all along," My father fumes. "Ms. Edwin-"

"Professor Edwin, to you.'

"-my son is a dedicated student of music and composition. I find it outrageous that you would try to blame him for when happened."

At least my parents were taking my side this time.

"Be that as it may, Mr. Zhou, your son was the last person seen leaving the music room. I've heard he makes it a habit to spend his time there during 1st period."

"Because it's my free period," I interrupt. "I've been going there to practice for my Juilliard audition. Please, Professor Edwin. A suspension would severely hurt my chances of getting in. You've got to reconsider!"

"First of all, I haven't 'got to' do anything you say. But, because this is your first offense, I'll reduce your punishment to a month of afternoon detention. And you'll have to clean the music room during your free periods. Am I clear?"

I bite back my anger and nod. Believe me, I'm pissed. I've been framed on the basis on an anonymous tip and now I've got to suffer the consequences. Then something hits me. I remember one of the first few texts Karma'sComing123.

 **Karma'sComing123: You know what? I was gonna go easy on you, but since you want to play games, I'm gonna decimate you. You're gonna lose everything you ever cared about. Consider everything you once knew destroyed. No more music playing, no more Julliard. No more Jason.**

This was his plan. He wants to destroy me from all angles. He's turned Jason against me, destroyed the music room, and got me frames for vandalism. He's wanted me to suffer this whole time. All because I dated the guy he was so damn infatuated with.

Well, if I'm going down, I'm taking his entitled ass down with me! I storm out of the office, where Ava is waiting for me.

"Edwin gave me detention for a month!" I complain.

"Uh, dude? You might want to look at this," she says. She's on a video chat with some girl.

"So you know how there's a lot of the janitor's stuff missing, like rope, rags, chlorine, and tape?"

"Oddly specific. And no, I didn't know."

"I found them. They're in Nick's closet."

"What are you doing at home?" I have to ask.

"Not important. I also found two one way plane tickets to Japan! I think he's planning to kidnap someone and not look back! There's a set time and date too!"

"When?"

"4 weeks from now."

"My birthday,'' I mutter. "Whose names are on the tickets?"

"Well, there's Nick…and some guy named Jason Parker...That's all I can say for now. I better go. I think someone's coming."

The video chat ends. I stand there, dumbfounded. When I finally find the words to speak, they come out cool and determined.

"I better go find Jason before it's too late."

"You're going to get back together with him?"

"I...don't know, actually. The important thing is making sure Jason's safe from harm."

"But how can you warn him in time if you have detention and all your free periods are taken up?"

"For once, I say damn the rules. I may not know where our relationship stands right now, but I sure as hell am not going to stand by and put him in harm's way."


	12. Blurred Lines

**Full Disclosure, the title of this chapter is a dishonorable mention to Robin Thicke's song Blurred Lines. I personally dislike the song, but it makes sense considering the context of the first and last quarter of the chapter. (Especially this line "** **But you're an animal, baby, it's in your nature.** **Just let me liberate you"**

 **BlackCanary98: Katie doesn't see Nick as the possessive monster he truly is. To her, he's Jason's perfect match because they're both in glee club. Professor Edwin has a habit of blaming the students for stupid things, so her blaming Aiden for trashing the band room on the basis of an anonymous tip (CoughNickCough) isn't all that surprising.**

Aiden's POV

"Where is he?" I whisper to myself. I hope he hasn't gotten into any trouble with Nick. He's not in the auditorium. (Although, to my chagrin, Katie is.)

"If you're looking for Jason, I don't know where he is," she says dismissively.

"Well, where's Nick?" I ask.

"I don't know where he went. Why are you checking up on them, anyway?" she demands.

"I know for a fact Nick doesn't have any good intentions with Jason. If something happens to him because you refused to tell me where he is, you'd have blood on your hands. Now _**where is he**_?" I demand, my hands balling into fists.

Katie looks surprised by my sudden outburst. And frankly, so am I.

"I probably shouldn't say...Nick told me he was just taking Jason to the nurse after he nearly collapsed...I think he's still there."

"You left them alone?!"

"Why not? Aren't they a couple now?"

"A w-what?"

"Didn't you see them kiss last night?"

I feel like I've been sucker punched in the gut. They kissed? And no one told me?

"You're lying...Jay...he wouldn't…"

"I told you he didn't need you. Now he's moved on to someone better, hasn't he?" Katie says smugly. I shake my head and rush to the nurse's office, Ava close behind.

"Wait...up...Aiden!"

When I open the door...let's just say the scene is not G rated at all. I hide behind a desk and peer around the corner.

"S-someone's gonna catch you," I hear Jason moan softly from in front of Nick. "You're hurting me!"

"Shhh, Jason love. No one's gonna hear us unless you keep making noise."

"I h-have a-"

"He's not here!" Nick hisses. "Forget him. I'm your boyfriend now. Now hold still or I'll have to knock you unconscious again."

At this Jay starts to panic and shift. Nick has him pinned to the nurse's bed. There's a loud struggle before Nick overpowers him.

"Please, anything but this...I'll do whatever you want, just not this! I'm not ready!"

"I call BS. I'm pretty sure you've done this with Aiden tons of times. Hell, I bet you aren't even a virgin."

I'm pretty sure Jason and I have never gone all the way, but that's none of Nick's business. I hear Jason cry out again. His cries make my blood boil with rage.

"Ow!"

"If you make this much noise from one finger I can't imagine what my-"

"GET OFF OF HIM!" I yell, jumping out from where I was hiding and dragging Nick away from Jason. Nick turns his head, spotting me.

"Great, now you're spying on us?" He growls. "Why don't you do us a favor and ge-"

All I see is red as my fist collides with Nick's face. He recoils back.

"This is for kissing Jason while he was drunk!"

He gets up and tries to lunge for me.

"Why you little-"

He trips over my foot. I viciously kick him in the head.

"And this is for kissing him again behind my back yesterday!"

Nick gets up again, his eyes red with rage.

"I'll kill you, you bastard!"

I land another kick on his chest.

"This is for every time you've touched him without his permission or tried to drive us apart!"

He's breathing heavily now, but he's not down yet. He grabs me and holds me way above his head.

"I'll teach you to get in between true love!"

I twist and land a brutal blow to his groin. He screams and lets go of me.

"And that's for trashing the music room and trying to frame me for it!"

"Just wait...I'll report this...you'll be ruined, Zhou. Ruined!"

"Yeah, try to explain that I caught you molesting my boyfriend and see if they'll take your side."

Nick turns red, but he storms off.

I sigh heavily. What just got into me? When have I ever resorted to violence to solve my problems?

"Aiden?" Jay speaks up softly. I rush over to him. He's flushed and breathing heavily. There's a few marks on his neck and stomach, most likely hickeys. "So...I'm your...boyfriend?"

"I...I don't know what I said."

"You still care about me?"

"Of course I do! I was just...mad. I felt that you prioritized glee club over us. Over you."

"I don't know what to do babe. I mean, Aiden."

"Jason...We need to do something. What if I hadn't come through the door?"

Jay looks away from me, pain in his eyes.

"I almost fainted again. Nick offered to take me to the nurse. I was too weak to refuse. He dropped me on the nurse's bed and pinned me down. He lifted up my shirt and started kissing and fondling me. I just felt him everywhere...especially where I was most sensitive. I thought he was going to force himself in me before you showed up."

"At least you're safe now."

"Y-you're not mad?"

"Of course I'm still pissed at you for not listening to me. But Nick forced himself on you and Katie tried to play it off as him carrying you to the nurse because you two were dating! And that was unacceptable."

Jay looks surprised and a little bit hurt by this.

"Katie said that? Why?"

"...because...she never wanted us to be together, and you know it. She thinks I've stolen you away from her."

"I...I can't imagine that she'd do this. But as much as it pains me to say it, it all makes sense. Aiden, I'm so sorry I didn't believe you before...and I let both of them put me in such a vulnerable position."

"It's ok, I guess. Can you move at all?"

"I'm a little shaky, but yeah. Could you help me up?"

I grab Jay's hands and pull him up. He stumbles, so he leans on the top of my head for support.

"Do you think you'll be fine until I can take you home? I...kinda have detention."

His eyes widen.

"Wow, first you come to my recuse to kick Nick's ass and now you're getting detention. Who knew Aiden Zhou was such a badass!"

The compliment makes me blush.

"It's not a big deal, Jay. I would've done anything to save you," I chuckle, before I remember what Nick has planned for Jason. "We need to get a restraining order on Nick. Fast. He's planning to kidnap you on my birthday."

"Your birthday? Damn I can't believe I almost forgot about that!"

"That's not the issue right now. All that matters is. you being ok."

"So...where does this leave us?" Jay asks quietly.

"What do you mean?"

"Are we...you know...together?"

I'm silent for a while. Was I really ready to go back?

"I...I don't know, Jay. If we do end up back together, things are going to have to change."

"I know, I'll listen to you more. I'll stop starving myself. I'll get help." he looks at me pleadingly with those blue orbs I usually can't resist. But where my heart usually melted at the sight...I feel nothing. What's going on?

"Well, it's a start…" I sigh. "Come on, we're gonna be late to class."

Ava's POV

I still can't believe Aiden had the balls to attack that dude like it was nothing. I was prepared to get involved if things went south. I hope they're ok now. As for me, I better drag myself to gym class. Good thing I'm not participating. Uma walks up to me, a coy smile on her face.

"What's with the look on your face?" I ask. "Shouldn't you get ready for gym?"

"I'm so bored of the coach right now. With me always having to go home after cheerleading practice, I feel I don't get enough time with you. Wanna get out of here?"

She drapes a hand over my shoulders, leaning in and smiling expectantly. I cast a furtive glance at the coach. No one seems to be watching us. I smile back at Uma.

"Where are we headed?"

She puts a finger to her lips.

"It's a surprise, silly! I can't tell you where you're going. Now close your eyes!" She giggles. I do as she says, as she leads me out of the gym and into a room. "Ok, now open your eyes!"

The place is all decorated with blue balloons and streamers.

"What's all this?" I ask. Uma reaches up on her toes to kiss me on the cheek.

"Surprise! It's a secret baby shower for our resident mom to be," she gushes, lightly patting my stomach.

"Well, I wouldn't say I'm the only one…"

"What do you mean?"

"You know how I first saw Patty at the clinic?"

"Yeah...so...OH! DAMN!"

"Shh, I think I'm the only one who knows. Besides, we're not here to talk about her. We're here to talk about us and have fun!"

Uma smiles and pulls me towards a decorated chair and urges me to sit in a decorated chair.

"Ok, here's party game #1! I call it, 'Drink up, Baby!"

"Uma, are you aware that pregnant mothers CAN'T drink?" I ask, a little concerned. I was new to this whole baby thing, but even I knew that!

"No, silly. We're not drinking anything alcoholic! It's orange juice poured into baby bottles. It's a drinking contest. First person to finish their bottle wins."

"Wins what?" I ask.

"You'll see! Now, bottom's up!" she says before downing her bottle.

"Hey!" I laugh before joining her. We both chug the orange juice and slam our bottles down at the same time.

"I'm pretty sure I was first," Uma says.

"No, my bottle hit the table first," I argue.

"Sure, sure. Let's agree to disagree and say it was a tie. Now onto the next challenge!"

"Wait, who gets the prize?"

Uma grins, kissing my cheeks and my bump.

"There it was!"

"Lame," I groan goodnaturedly. "I expected something better."

"Sorry, Avie. Maybe this challenge's prize will be better. Anyway, this challenge is called Bobbing for Nipples!"

I start to crack up at the name. She pulls out a bucket with a bunch of baby bottle nipples in the water.

"Ohh, that's what you meant," I chuckle. Uma flushes at the innuendo.

"SO...the game is simple. You'll be blindfolded, and you'll have to pick up as many nipples as possible...with your teeth!"

I keep laughing loudly, my sides hurting from the immature hilarity.

"You're killing me, Uma!"

"Time's ticking, Ava."

"Ok, Ok!" I giggle, taking the blindfold and dunking my head in the bucket. Minutes later, we count.

"I guess you won, Ava," Uma says after the counting.

"Now, I hope I'm getting a better prize this time?"

Uma produces a cake from behind her.

"You bet!"

The cake is small and covered in two shades of blue frosting. Probably because I'm having twin boys. Uma cuts a slice and feeds it to me.

"Uma, I can't thank you enough for this. But I've got to ask, why?"

"Avie...after I was shot I thought I'd never see you again. And when I do find you...You're already 6 months pregnant by some sleazeball with no sense of consent. I can't help but feel I was somewhat responsible for that," she sighs. "I thought this should be the way to try and make it up to you. It's the least I can do. I want to be in your life and the babies' lives."

"Oh, you're gonna make me cry…" I reach out and hug her. "Uma, that means so much for me to hear you say that."

"It's so great how the two of you are SO busted!"

We both whirl around.

"What are you doing here?!" Uma asks.

Patty simply smirks and puts her phone in her pocket. That bitch is _so_ dead.

"I might as well ask you same question, Nicole. Or should I say, _Uma_."

Rose's POV

When I come to, there's a whole group of people standing over my bed.

"Thank goodness she's awake. Rose, can you hear me?" goes a male's worried voice. "Rosie?"

"Ace, is that you?" I ask, reaching out for him.

"Yeah, it's me," he says. My vision clears, and I see my whole family is here...except my mom.

"We came as soon as we heard about the car accident, Rosemary," says my dad. "We're so lucky all you had was a concussion. How're you feeling, sweetheart?"

"My head hurts," I moan.

"Raaa…" Alicia babbles, waving her stubby arms in my direction. Roscoe places her in my arms. She starts playing with my hair, getting tangled in it. "Uh oh…"

This makes me laugh.

"Ace, did you happen to see the license plate of the bastard that hit my daughter?

Ace shakes his head.

"I followed Rose and the ambulance to the hospital immediately."

"Well, do you at least know who the perp is?"

"Nick Blake. He's a senior at our school. He's about my height, more muscular build. He's got blond hair...uh, green eyes...also, I have strong reason to believe he's going to harm another student at our school, Jason Parker."

"What? Ace, what are you talking about?" I ask. Jason was being harassed? Why didn't any of them tell me this?

"It's personal, Rose."

"It's personal to me if one of my friends are involved."

"Sweetie, you're injured. You need to-"

"Y'know it's funny how you tell me to step back when you can't even-"

"Rose?" I hear a feminine voice call me from the back of the room. All of us turn, and there's my mother! I'm glad I'm holding Ross's daughter, because my dad looks like he's seen a ghost and Roscoe looks like he's about to pass out.

"M-mom?!" he stammers.

"Ramona?!" my dad splutters. My mom freezes like a deer caught in headlights. She shuffles awkwardly.

"I...uh...this must be a bad time," she stutters. She turns to leave, my father and Roscoe following suit.

"Oh my gosh…" I sigh. In the shock of seeing my mom after 13 freaking years, I'd forgotten that I'd never told either of them.

"Rose," Ace says, taking my hand. "I'm so sorry."

"For what?"

"If I'd been paying attention-"

"That driver ran a red light. This is on him. But I think you should go home. You've been here for hours."

It shows in his face, too. He's tired. I reach out and stroke his cheek.

"Rose, I-"

"GO. Home. Now." I order. "Please."

Ace looks rather reluctant, but he nods.

"Fine."

"And this time, I mean go home and rest. Not go home and spend hours on your laptop doing God knows what."

"Ok, Ok! I'm going, Rosie!"

He kisses me goodbye. I forget Alicia is in my arms. She tries to push Ace's face away from mine.

"Eww!" she squeals, pressing at Ace's cheek. Ace laughs and ruffles the little girl's hair.

"Bye, Rose."

"Bye, Ace."

My parents and Roscoe come back. Roscoe looks the most rattled.

"Ray, I swear I made a mistake," my mother pleads.

"13 years, Ramona. 13. That's how long we thought you were dead. Rose and Roscoe both grew up without a mother." I can't tell if my dad is more upset or angry.

"I wouldn't of come here if I hadn't run into her friend at the clinic."

Dad turns to me. Oh, crap.

"Rose, you knew about this?"

"I wasn't sure when to tell you. She just came into town a month ago-"

"A MONTH, Rosemary?!"

"Well, how would you feel if I brought some random woman home and told you guys she's my mom?"

Roscoe sighs, running a hand through his hair.

"Rosebud...do you remember when we were kids? Like, I was 12, you were 5. I told you how much I missed her. How I'd give anything to see my mother. I thought she was dead, Rose."

"I know, but-"

"Why couldn't you at least told me!? You knew it would have meant the world to see her again."

"Because you'd react like this. It's too soon after I found her. What if you lost it in front of your fiance? Or your daughter?"

He heaves a sigh of anger and hurt.

"I don't need this. I need to...clear my head. Come on, Alicia."

He pulls Alicia away from me. She starts to cry.

"Raah!" she wails.

"Oh, shush, you." His voice is surprisingly quiet, probably to avoid scaring her.

"We will discuss this at home, Rosemary," my dad says. It's not the usual 'I may be a police chief but I still tell dad jokes' voice. It's the 'I am an enforcer of the law first and your father second,' voice.

"What about mom?" I dare to ask.

"The more the merrier," he says sarcastically. My mom looks between us and the door.

"I'll...uh, see myself out now," she mutters.

"Bye mom."

"...you can call me Ramona, sweetie," she says with a faint smile before she walks out the door.

My father helps me get discharged from the hospital. The car ride home if long and painfully silent, with only the sound of the car and breathing punctuating the air.

Once we get home, he orders me to my room.

"Ava will bring you your dinner," he says.

"But Dad-"

" **Now**."

I can tell he's trying not to lash out at me. I scurry up the stairs. I brush past Ava, who looks upset as well.

"What's up with you?" I ask.

"Nothing you need to be worried about," she answers curtly. I sigh and head to my room. When Ava comes back, she looks like she's been crying.

'Ava…"

"I'm fine," she sniffs.

"Is it pregnancy hormones?"

"Y-yeah, that's it. Heh, one day I'm all hugs and rainbows and the next I'm crying my eyes out."

She places my dinner on my bed and bolts out.

Jason's POV

I'm nervously pacing as I wait for Aiden to get out of detention when suddenly I'm called into the office. I pale when I see who's in it. Nick leers at me. Aiden glares at him.

"Sit, Mr. Parker. We'll be here a while," Professor Edwin says. "You're not in trouble."

I sit next to Aiden, much to Nick's chagrin. He barely acknowledges my presence.

"Now, it's come to my attention that there's been a conflict involving the three of you."

I open my mouth to speak, but it feels like someone is strangling me, preventing words from coming out of my mouth.

"Professor Edwin, I didn't mean to let things get out of hand, I just happened to walk by the nurse's office when I found Zhou here sexually assaulting his ex-boyfriend Jason."

"Ok, you are **not** going to take me down for something I caught you doing!" Aiden retorts. "You had him pinned down. He was trying to get away from you, but you subdued him. You tried to rap-"

"I did no such thing!"

"That's enough from both of you! Jason, can you corroborate either of their stories?" Edwin asks me.

I gasp for air, avoiding both Aiden and Nick's gaze, I clutch the seat tight. The little food I have in my stomach from Aiden's snack threatens to revolt.

 _Say something, Jay and this'll be all over!_

 _He'll never leave you alone after this. Just wait until he manages to corner you again. Aiden won't be able to save you this time._

 _But Aiden will make sure that won't happen._

 _Please, you know he's still upset with you. Do you honestly think he still likes you after all the bullshit you've done?_

 _I...he loves me. He told me so._

 _Loved. Past tense. Things are different now. He might as well hate you._

 _He doesn't…_

"Jason?" Professor Edwin's voice cuts into my thoughts. "Something the matter?"

"I feel sick," I mutter, holding my body tight. But I can't get rid of that icky feeling I'm getting from the attack this afternoon. How vulnerable I was on my back, legs pinned down, him trying to tug my shirt up and my pants down. I tried to shut my body down, to block what was happening. The image is burned in my mind.

"Jason? Do I need to call a hospital?"

"No, no, no…"

"Professor Edwin, Jason's clearly traumatized by what happened. My DT is over so I'm going to take him home now."

"Wait a minute, Zhou. I need you to stay after to clean up the band room."

"I'm telling you I didn't do it! There's clearly a spray painted message, 'Karma's a bitch, isn't it Zhou?' This incident was directed at me. Someone has attempted to frame me. If you don't mind, I'll be taking him home now. In case you've forgotten, it's 5 pm and my parents are waiting for me."

I manage to move my legs to follow Aiden out of the Principal's office. He says nothing as we get in his mother's car.

"Most of my stuff's still at Katie's place," I mumble.

"We can pick it up tomorrow," he answers sharply without even looking at me.

He's so...distant.

When we get home, Aiden shows me to the guest room.

"Aiden, wait."

He turns around.

"What?"

"I'm sorry," I say.

"I know."

"And?"

"And what?"

"What's up with you?"

"What's up with me?"

"Stop that!"

"Stop what?"

"Giving me those short answers, that's what."

"What, am I supposed to talk and act like everything's normal? Nick assaulted you, and when you were called to speak up, you clammed up!"

"I panicked, ok? You have no idea how I felt that moment. It's like you don't even know me!"

"Maybe I don't. I mean, we've only dated for a year and you've been missing for 4 years. Did our time together as kids mean nothing to you? Does our time together now mean nothing to you?"

"I messed up. And I acknowledge that. I just wish we could start over for real."

This would be the part where Aiden can barely contain his smile and rush into my arms. But he just stands there, barely moving.

"Jason. I'm not ready. Not now, not in the near future. Maybe one day, but definitely not today. I'm doing this because no matter what, I still care about you a lot and I'd hate it if something bad happened to you."

He gives me a brief but tight hug as he says this. I'm not sure whether to interpret this as romantic or platonic. Aiden turns to leave.

"Would you beat Nick up again if the time came for it?"

He turns slightly, a hint of a smirk playing at his lips.

"For you? Over and over."

I chuckle weakly.

"Seriously thought? Nick's gonna be pissed you had the guts to take him on. He'll be waiting for revenge."

"I can train myself," he says defiantly. "When I'm done, she'll be no match for me. I mean, he'll be no match for me."

"Were you thinking of Jessica when you said that?"

"N-no...yes. Ever since she tried to kill me...again. I've hated myself for not being strong enough to fight back. I took a self defense class that summer you went to camp. No way am I letting myself be vulnerable again."

He shakes his head, his eyes cast to the ground.

"Aiden, let me train with you."

"It's too risky. You're too-"

"Weak?"

"No, but...I don't think you're in the best condition. You saw how easily Nick overpowered you."

I sharply inhale.

"Y-yes."

"Sorry. But that's my point. It's not safe for you. You need to recover. I'm saying this as...your friend."

"Fair enough."

"Goodnight, Jason."

"...Goodnight."

He leaves, closing the door behind him. I suddenly have the urge to shower, so I bolt out of the room into the bathroom and lock it.

"You better not be purging in there!" Aiden yells from behind the door.

"I'm not, I swear!" I yell back as I hide into the secluded walls of the shower. But no matter how much scalding hot water I use, how much shampoo I use in my hair, or how hard I scrub my skin, I still can't get the feel and the smell of Nick off my body. I scrub my skin raw until it turns pink. Water streams on my face, and I can't tell if it's the shower water or my tears.

After what feels like hours of showering, I crawl back into my own bed and pull the covers tightly around my body and try to sleep.

Sleep? Ha! I can't even close my eyes without seeing Nick's lustful green eyes as he violated me. All I can do is clutch my pillow and pretend it's the body of a boyfriend who still loves me no matter what. My body visibly shakes with sobs as the pain of today's events overwhelms me.

I hear the door open, feel a hand on my back, and Aiden's voice softly saying, "He can't hurt you here. You're safe."


	13. Somebody That I Used to Know

**BlackCanary98: I'm glad you like where this is going with Aiden and Jason. I do think Chief Brinkwater's reaction was some what justified, but I also feel Rose is kinda innocent in all this and happened to be caught in the middle.**

Aiden's POV

Jason's violently trembling under his blankets, his tearful gasps muffled.

"Jace," I say softly. "I'm here."

I sit on the bed next to him. Jason slowly pokes his head out of the covers.

"I was just having a nightmare," he mutters.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"I'd rather just sleep, A. I just want to forget this ever happened."

"You know what helps me feel better? Some tea and a snack. I'll go make some."

"I don't see how that's gonna do anything."

"You'll feel calmer afterwards. Then you'll be able to get some sleep. You can come if you'd like."

"Ok…"

He crawls out of bed and follows me into the kitchen. I turn on a small light, giving the room a soft glow.

"Heh…" I chuckle.

"What?"

"I remember when we first met. It was just like this. We made some peppermint tea?"

Jay smiles faintly.

"We never got around to making it, did we?"

"Yeah, we were too busy...you know?" A blush creeps across my cheeks.

"Making out?"

"Yep."

(Flashback)

It was just a few hours after Jason had saved me after I fell into the thin ice.

"I don't mean to brag or anything," he said. "but I make a mean peppermint tea."

My eyes lit up. "You know how to make peppermint tea?"

"Why, you like it?"

"No. I love it. I've loved it since I was a kid."

"Well then you're gonna love this," he said leading me into a small kitchen. I boiled the water while he took out the peppermint leaves. I paused when I noticed him take out a can of whipped cream and place it on the counter next to the stove.

"What's the whipped cream for?" I asked. He smirked at me, a glint in his eyes I would come to love when we officially started dating.

"You'll see," he said.

"I don't really put things in tea that weren't meant to be there, but I'll give it a shot."

"I have to ask you something," Jay said after a pause. "What was your ex girlfriend like?"

I frowned a little. Talking about Jessica was not something I wanted to do right now. Jay looked at me expectantly.

"I actually have two ex girlfriends, to be honest. My second girlfriend made my first break up with me so she could start dating me. Let's just say she used more than her mouth to get what she wants. I finally dumped her when I caught her cheating, eliminating all hope that...that she ever loved me. She just wanted to see Rose miserable."

Wow, that was a mouthful.

Jason looked up at me. "Rose? As in, Rose Brinkwater, founder of Lakeside High?"

"Yeah, why?" I ask.

" 'Cause I go to her school!" Jason exclaimed. Why haven't I seen this boy before? There's something about him that seemed familiar. "Man, I can't believe your ex would do something like this. Sounds like something my ex Jessica would do."

I nearly burnt my hand on the stove when I heard this.

"Are you sure we're not talking about the same Jessica? Black, curly hair? Vietnamese? Pink lip gloss?"

"Has an Iphone 10? Yep, that's the one," Jay finished, crossing his arms. "I see we have a common enemy.

"Yep. She played us both," I replied awkwardly.

"I have a plan for revenge, if you're interested," he said, giving me a cocky smirk.

"What?"

"Well…" he trailed off, a blush creeping on his cheeks. "We could...I don't know...date and make her jealous."

Jay suddenly became more shy, rubbing the back of his neck and looking at the ground. A warm sensation spread throughout my body. I looked at his dazzling blue eyes, the shy grin on his freckled face. He's cute. Like, really cute. And I really wanted to stick it to Jessica for her reign of terror. But I wondered if...Jay's feelings were just part of the scheme.

"Are...you...asking me out?"

"It doesn't haven't to be anything serious if you don't feel that way...It's just...ah, forget it."

He turned to run away, but I held his arm. That moment was what changed everything between us.

"Wait!" I exclaim. "We can still do this. Besides...I kinda like you…"

"Wait...really?"

"Yeah. You did save my life and all. Plus, you seem like an easy person to talk to and...um, if we're gonna stick it to Jessica we should at least get to know each other better."

"Wow...thanks, Aiden." He said with a radiant smile. "That's so- look out!"

I whipped around and noticed the can off whipped cream has caught on fire and on the verge of exploding. I reached out to turn off the stove, but Jason held me back. One hand covered my face and the other held my waist. I was strangely comforted by this.

POP!

Cream went everywhere. My hair, the counter, Jason's face. He didn't seem to notice.

"Are you alright?" He asked, checking me for any creamy residue. I looked up at him and started laughing. "What?"

"Um...have you looked into a mirror lately?" I joked. "You look like Santa Claus halfway shaved his beard."

Jay put a hand to his face and wiped some cream off. He grinned at me before smearing it on my nose and left cheek.

"Look who's talking, sweetheart," he teased. I grabbed a paper towel and wipe the cream off my face. Out of the corner of my eye I saw Jason moving sneakily towards the cupboard. He whipped around with another can of whipped cream. "You think this is a game?"

"Well, I think we should get back to making that peppermint tea, huh?"

"Tea can wait. Revenge is now," he said, pressing the nozzle. A stream of cream barely missed me. I managed to make it over to him and take the can out of his hands. He lunged for me, but his hands find my hips instead. I hold the can up in front of me, my index finger on the nozzle.

"Cease and desist, Jay!"

"I've had this battle with my sisters many times. I've never lost. I also happen to be a great guesser of tickle spots. Now, you can let go of the can and admit a painless defeat. Or you can refuse...and may God have mercy on your soul."

Our faces were just inches from each other. The obvious tension between the two of us was too great to ignore. There was something about this boy that felt familiar. Maybe he felt it too. Everything in me was screaming, kiss him, kiss him! I had to find out. I stood on the tips of my toes, leaned in, and kissed him tenderly. When I pulled away, Jason was breathless and red faced. Then there was that spark of familiarity in his eyes.

"I'm sorry if that was too far…"

"No, it's fine...just...wow, that was some kiss. You play trumpet?"

"How did you know?"

He smiled and said, "I know for a fact trumpet players make the best kissers."

The can of whipped cream was forgotten as he cupped my cheeks and pulled me in for another kiss. We kissed over and over like we were long lost lovers. Which, we actually were. At that moment... It's all so sudden and so soon... But it's like this boy's been with me all my life.

"Whoops," went one of Jason's sisters. "Hope I'm not interrupting anything."

"Dammit, Jamie!" Jason cursed. Jamie laughed and headed back out the door she came from. I heard hushed giggles from behind the door. Jason looked at me.

"Are...are we still pretending anymore?"

(End Flashback)

I've asked myself that question since I kissed Jay the first time.

"What are you thinking about?" Jay asks softly.

I glance at the boiling tea on the stove.

"Old times," I answer wistfully.

"We had our first kiss in this setting…"

"I know…"

"There was such a spark back then."

"Yeah…"

There's a huge pause between us. Jason and I stand face to face of each other, staring intently at each other, neither of us daring to make a move.

"Well, I better go check on the today," he says rather nonchalantly. He turns and makes his way towards the toaster, ruining the moment.

Ouch. Well, I kinda expected Jay to react negatively. I bring the tea off the stove and pour it into two cups. Jason comes back with the toast. We eat in mostly silence. I notice Jay's hands are shaking. At least he's making an attempt to eat.

"Do you want to just stay home tomorrow?" I ask him. "Surely my parents will understand."

Jason shakes his head.

"If I stay at home, Nick will know he's rattled me. I've just gotta...stay strong."

"So what are you going to do about him and Katie?"

"I'll confront Katie during practice...and I'll request for Nick to be banned from glee club. I just hope it works."

I put one arm around Jay's shoulder and pull him towards me.

"No matter what, I'll be right here with you."

Jason smiles weakly. He awkwardly rests his head on my shoulder, mostly because he's taller than I am. Sooner or later, his gentle breathing tells me he's fallen asleep. I pick him up, and am shocked by how light he is. Possibly a testament to how much weight Jay's lost or how much stronger I've become.

I carry Jay to his room and tuck him in. I brush the hair out of his face, pleased at how peaceful he looks. I give him a tiny kiss on the forehead, hoping he doesn't wake up and notice. With one final glance, I leave his room and close the door behind me.

Jason's POV

Wow, that tea must have worked really well, I feel great and well rested despite the trauma of what I went through yesterday.

I get ready for...ugh, school. Just the thought of going back makes my skin crawl. But I can't let Nick think he has may power over me by scaring me.

When I get to the bathroom, the weights, tape measures, and diet pills are all gone. Must be Aiden's doing, but I won't question it.

"Morning," he says from the table when I head downstairs.

"Morning, A."

"Sleep well?"

"Yeah."

"Great. You still feeling up to school?"

"...I guess."

"Are you sure? You can always stay home."

"I know, but I need to confront both Katie and Nick once and for all or I'll never get closure."

"I don't want you putting yourself in danger again. Who knows what either of them are going to pull after the latest incident."

"I won't talk to Nick in person, I'll just get someone else to break the news to him," I say uncertainty. After I yelled at Nick for touching me last week, a few glee club members thought I overreacted. Some are still mad at me.

"Well, then...come on, my mom's waiting in the car."

Aiden's mother peers at the two of us through her rearview mirror.

"I haven't seen the two of you act all lovey-dovey in a while. How are things between you two?" She asks.

"Mom!" Aiden splitters, turning a deep shade of red.

"It's...uh...complicated, Mrs. Zhou." I say.

"Jason, we've been through this before. Just call me Bridget."

"I've always been taught never to refer to my elders by their first names...but I guess I can make an exception...Bridget."

She smiles and continues driving. Aiden's staring out the window at nothing in particular.

My phone buzzes. I haven't looked at my phone since my dad called and nearly drove me off the edge with dysphoria. I'm not sure I wanted to check now, but I do so anyway.

Missed Call: KitKat (5)

4 new messages from KitKat

KitKat: Jason, where are you?

KitKat: After Nick told me he took you to the nurse he said Aiden tried to assault you. Are you ok?

KitKat: Jace? Are you hurt? Do I need to call a hospital?

KitKat: You better not be at you-know-who's place!

I shake my head in disgust. Of course Nick would try to flip the story to make himself seem like the good guy. I hope he isn't spreading this bullshit all over school.

Once Bridget drops us off, I make a beeline for the auditorium with Aiden lagging behind. Katie is there waiting for me, obviously pissed.

"Jason," she hisses. "I was so worried about you! Why didn't you call me? And what is he doing here?"

She wrinkles her nose at the sight of Aiden.

"Kat, we need to talk."

"I hope this talk is about you finally cutting out the toxic people in your life.,

"Actually your right. I am going to cut the toxic people in my life...starting with Nick...and you."

"W-what?" She gasps. "What do you mean?"

"Well, Nick for obvious reasons. But you, Katie? You were the first friend I had here besides Rose. We were inseparable. But then I started dating Jessica (worst mistake if my life, I know.) It's like your personality took a 180 turn. You started bad mouthing her, pointing out her flaws, saying I was better off without her. I admit, it was deserved, since she was a horrible person but I didn't know it at the time. But once we broke up, it was like nothing had ever happened. Now you've been doing the same to Aiden, who's been nothing but good to me. To make things worse, you've done everything in your power to drive a wedge between the two of us, even trying to force me with a guy YOU KNOW makes me uncomfortable as hell."

"He loves you, Jason."

"I don't love him! I never did! But of course, you saw that as a way to keep me in the glee club and away from the one I truly love. And well...it kinda worked."

Aiden shifts awkwardly next to me. I feel guilty. I bet he does too. But I kinda deserved it for pushing him away.

"Jace, everything I've done was for your own good!"

"Was it, Kat? Or was it just so I wouldn't dump you like I should've a long time ago?"

"Jay, I think you're just traumatized by what this...bastard did to you?"

"HE DIDN'T TRY TO RAPE ME, NICK DID!" I yell. "ALL NICK'S DONE SINCE HE GOT HERE LAST MONTH IS GET IN MY PERSONAL FUCKING SPACE AND NOT TAKE A FUCKING NO FOR A FUCKING ANSWER, AND YOU CAN'T SEEN TO GET THROUGH YOUR THICK SKULL!"

I'm panting heavily. Aiden puts a calming hand on my shoulder. Then I look at Katie's tearful face and wonder if I've gone too far. Then her head snaps up, her eyes fixated on Aiden.

"You...this all your fault! You brainwashed him and turned him against me! You stole my best friend you chink!"

"Whoa, lay off on the racial slurs," Aiden says before Katie lunges at him. Thankfully, Aiden dodges and Katie goes hurtling towards a trash can. I have to hold her back to keep her from clawing Aiden's eyes out.

"Katie...stop it! This isn't right!" I order. "I've made my choice. I don't want to be friends anymore."

"You don't know what you're saying."

"Yes, I do. Because of you and Nick, I might have lost someone very important in my life," I say, looking directly at Aiden. "And I don't know if I'll ever get him back."

"Do you know what this'll do to the glee club?" She demands. "We're this close to winning it all!"

"I think...I should just disband the glee club."

"But we've worked so hard for years! Are you really going to give up when you're this close?"

"Maybe I won't disband, but I sure as hell don't want either of you near me."

"Jason…"

"Goodbye, Katie. You can drop my stuff off in the main office."

Aiden and I walk out of the auditorium.

"How are you feeling?" Aiden asks once we're outside.

"I feel...like at least one weight's been lifted off my shoulder. But I still have to kick Nick out. Maybe Katie will deliver the news to him."

"Want me to rough him up again?" He half jokes.

"Not really, but thanks."

We make it to my locker. I open it, and a bunch of roses and hearts fall out. I turn to Aiden.

"I didn't do this."

I pick up the note inside.

I'm sorry, Jason Love.  
-signed NB

"Obviously, NB stands for Nick Blake, but what is he sorry for? For basically everything he's done to me and you?"

"He must be trying to butter you up."

"By apologizing for assaulting me?!"

"I guess he's trying to make you believe that he had no ill intentions."

"Pfft, yeah right. I knew his nice guy act was just a facade. Hey, maybe we should take these flowers up to him and tell him to shove them up his-"

A paper boy throws a newspaper at us.

"Rude," Aiden growls. "Let's see what this silly paper says."

Aiden's expression is normal at first. He frowns. He begins to turn white. He turns the paper towards me.

Teenage Predator Lurking the Halls of Lakeside High by Dave Henry  
Better lock your doors and hide your significant other! There's a wannabe rapist in our midst! The perp was reported inside the nurse's office attempting to sexually assault a fellow student. Had it not been for our hero, new student Nick Blake, the victim might have been even more traumatized.

"It was nothing, really," Blake said when questioned last night. "I just saw the person who was in danger and well...jumped in to help them. I mean, who wouldn't do anything to protect the ones they care about?"

Unfortunately, the scumbag ran off before he could be apprehended. The only clue Blake would give was that the perp's initials were AZ.

"Aiden, there are tons of kids with those initials."

"But it's only a matter of time before they get to me!"

Aiden balls his fists, a fire in his eyes I had never seen before. Only it wasn't from determination...it was from rage.

"Aiden wait," I say, reaching out for one of his hands. "I know you're angry."

"I am. He hurt you and has the nerve to slander me?"

"But trust me, getting blood on your hands is not the way to go about it."

"I know...but-"

"No buts. Nick will get his Karma in due time. Now, walk me to class?"

Aiden sighs and smiles at me.

"Why can't I say no to you?"

I'm worried that Aiden walking in on me and Nick has taken a toll on him. This whole mess with Nick is changing him...and not for the better.

Ava's POV

Things have never been worse since Patty found out about Uma. She's held our secret over our heads, and now we're both her slaves. She's worse to Uma and easier on me because she doesn't want to be responsible if something happens to my babies. That doesn't stop her from humiliating us whenever she can.

And it's not like we can expose her own pregnancy. If word gets out that she's also expecting, she'll make sure people will know that Uma's not really a student here and then I'll lose Uma again.

"Chop, chop, ladies!" Patty calls from in front of the two of us. "The cheer squad needs those baked goods from yesterday!"

"That makes no sense," I mutter. I have the urge to sling this dough at her face, but then I remember Uma...and I swallow my anger.

Once Patty leaves, Uma sighs and covers her face with her powder covered hands.

"Avie...I'm so sorry I got you into this mess," she sniffles.

"It's ok, Uma. Sooner or later Patty's going to have to come clean about her pregnancy. And once that happens…"

"We'll lose leverage over her," Uma laments. "She'll still know I'm not really Nicole!"

"Come on, let's bake the stupid cupcakes and we can come up with a plan B."

I kiss her on the cheek. She smiles at me, tears glistening in her gray eyes.

"Avie, I spent so long separated from you that...if my mother found out I was still seeing you...it would just break me with what she's going to do to me."

"I won't let that happen, cupcake," I say, waving a nauseously pink one under her nose.

"Ugh," she groans, wrinkling her nose. "After this I don't want to see or hear of another cupcake again."

We both laugh and get back to work.

A while later, Patty comes back to check on my progress. She seems displeased at how much we've accomplished.

"I'm surprised Ava here didn't eat any of the cupcakes," she sneers, looking at my gut. "Or maybe she's already so fat I wouldn't have noticed the extra weight."

"Listen you little-"

"Little what, Ava? Did I hear you talking back to me? I know someone with quite a secret isn't talking back to me!"

"Nothing...Patty."

"Nothing what?"

I huff in annoyance.

"Nothing, Ms. Patty."

"And don't you forget it!"

She smirks at us and flounces away.

"Ooh I can't wait until she starts to blow up like a balloon," I growl.

(Sneak Peak of the next chapter)

Rose's POV

No one was in the mood to drive me to school and Dad had taken my motorcycle away. Ava caught a ride from a friend, but I decided to stay home, claiming a mental health day.

It's so lonely in the house. Roscoe's straight up giving me the cold shoulder and my dad's at work. He made it very clear I couldn't have friends over. I guess that means I'm grounded. At least I have my phone.

I few pebbles hit my window. I check outside to see who it is, and there's Ace down below.

"Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair!" He calls from the bottom.

"I can't!" I reply. "Mother Gothel said no guests."

"Aww, please? I want to talk to you about yesterday. If I can't come up there, come down here!"

I consider this for a moment. Everyone in the house is pretty pissed off at me. I don't want to make things worse by sneaking around with my boyfriend. But...I could use someone to talk to who doesn't blame me for this mess.

Five minutes later, I'm standing outside with my hair done and clothes fresh. Ace whistles

"Ready to go, Romeo," I say, taking Ace's hand.

"After you, Juliet," he flirts back, kissing my hand. He leads me into a new car.

"So...what happens to you old car?"

"Scrapped it. I could've had it repaired but…"

"It's gonna remind you of the car accident?"

"Yeah, pretty much," he says. "How's your head?"

"Kinda hurts but I'll be fine. Let's go for a drive."

"I hope your dad doesn't spot us. I'm pretty sure he doesn't trust me after the hickey incident. And well, it's a little scary dating the daughter of the police chief."

"He'll probably be at the office all day. Don't worry. Now come on. I need to go somewhere to clear my head."

"I know just the place."


	14. Bad Blood

**I'm glad you liked the flashback. Yeah, it will take a while for things to go back to normal with Nick still on the loose. Jason cutting off Katie was definitely a long way coming. You thought Nick was going to let Jay and Aiden paint him as the bad guy? And well, Patty's got a few things coming to her as well ;)**

Rose's POV

"You sure you want to do this, Rose?" Ace asks.

"I need answers from her. It seems whatever went down between her and my family is affecting them badly. Everyone's giving me the silent treatment. I have a feeling she knows more than she lets on."

"Well, something about her story seems off. If she had you at 18 and lost you when you were three, and Ava said she met you when she was three, then that would make her 21 when it happened. But then she said she graduated college and married your dad. Your dad adopted you around the same time your mother lost you, so…"

"My gosh! You're right, Ace!" I gasp after I realized the holes in my mother's story. "We need to get to the clinic right away!"

So Ace drives me to the clinic in ten minutes.

"We need to see Dr. Ramona Brinkwater," Ace states. The receptionist looks at the two of us.

"She goes by Dr. Garcia now, and she's with a patient. Do either of you have an appointment?"

"No, but I'm her daughter."

Now she's narrowing her eyes at us. Uh oh.

"Nice try. Dr. Garcia doesn't look a day over 30 and I've heard she lost her toddler years ago in a car accident."

"B-but I really am her-"

"You can sit your asses down and wait or I'll have security escort you out."

So we roll our eyes and sit down. I rest my head on Ace's shoulder and sigh heavily.

"Escort you out," Ace snorts. "Was that lady born in the 70s?"

"Why would my mother tell people I died in a car accident?" I ask sadly.

"No one wants to show off the skeletons in their closet. She knows what could happen if they knew the truth about you."

"But Ace...she lied about me...about our whole family and just...put everything behind her like it didn't matter anymore...like we didn't matter to her."

I lower my head so Ace can't see the tears welling up in my eyes. He reaches over and drapes one arm over my shoulder, pulling me close.

"I wish there was something I could do…"

"I need information on her, Ace. I've at least got to sort this mess out before I go off to college in 8 months."

"Rosie...it's ok."

He holds me as we sit in silence for what seems like ages. Finally, the door opens.

"Ms. Garcia will see you now," the receptionist says. We get up and head into the examiners room. My mom, er, Ramona looks up and beckons the two of us into her private office. Ace lingers in the doorway.

"Your friend can come too," she says.

"He's my boyfriend actually," I mumble. She blushes.

"Apologies, I uh...kinda forgot how much you'd grown since I last saw you."

"Yeah, the last time you saw me I was the size of a pillow and had ribbons in my hair," I say, trying not to sound offensive.

"Yes…"

"We need to talk? Why did you tell people you had a miscarriage? That I wasn't your daughter?"

She looks away from me.

"I may have lied to your friend Ava about when I had you, but the rest is true. You have to believe me."

"I have to?" I challenge skeptically.

"I don't think I like your tone, Rose," she says sternly.

"And I don't like being lied to. Tell me, Ramona. Was I just the product of a one night stand gone wrong? Then you realized you couldn't deal with the consequences of having a child tag along on your social life so you dumped me and cooked up some bulsjit excuse to get me to feel bad for you?"

"Rosemary, if you don't watch that mouth of yours, I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

"Then tell me what happened? Why did you leave?"

"I'm afraid I don't have the time to answer that," she says, shuffling a bunch of papers. "Another patient is waiting for me."

"Wait, co-"

"I think the two of you can see yourselves out," she says briskly, before walking out herself. I sigh in disappointment.

"Well that was a bust," I groan. "She only admitted to lying about the time range."

"Do you think she still has a file on you?" Ace asks.

"If she did, it probably wouldn't be here where someone can easily access it."

"True, true. But she has to have some proof of your birth, right?"

"They could be wherever she's living right now. But after how I just treated her, I doubt she's gonna invite us for tea anytime soon."

Ace places his hand on my shoulder.

"Rosie, I get it. You're frustrated as hell, and you're right to be that way. But we need to get on her good side so we can find the truth."

"And, how are we going to do that?"

"This may be an...underhanded tactic. Then again, your mother withholding your history from you is pretty underhanded. I'm thinking...maybe make her feel guilty?"

"Ace...are you ask me to guilt trip her?"

"It might be our only option if all she's going to tell us is how 'bad' she feels about this whole mess."

"But Ace, I don't know how to fake cry. It's not in my nature to manipulate someone like that, especially someone who's supposed to be family."

"Rose, your so called family has been lying to you for years," he says, looking away from me. "If they can't even trust you, how can you trust them?"

"Because my parents aren't yours, Ace," I say and almost instantly regret it. "I'm sorry, I-"

"No, you're right. It's hard to have a good perception of parents when you live with the ones who tormented you for years," he mutters.

"I know, but haven't they promised that they'd lay off you?" I ask.

"My dad slips up now and then, but I manage to get away in time. Sometimes."

"Oh…"

"Let's not worry about my parents. You want to know why there's history between your parents and brother, and she's the only one who knows what really have to. You'll probably have to butter her up and lay on the guilt to get her to crack."

"And you know this, how?"

"I have my ways."

Jason's POV

My stomach's constantly churning as I approach the auditorium. _Please don't let Nick be there_. To my surprise, the rest of the glee club is already in there practicing...without me. Unfortunately, Nick and Katie are there as well.

"Hey guys," I say nervously. Everyone looks up at me. Some have confusion in their eyes, others...disgust?

"What are you doing here, Jason?" Nick asks, an unnerving glint in his eyes. "I thought you quit. I heard you couldn't handle the pressure anymore."

"I never said that," I retort. "I said I didn't want to see you or Katie in my glee club anymore."

"We aren't," Katie says with a smirk. "This is _our_ glee club, now."

"What the hell do you mean?" I demand.

"Well, Katie told everyone you quit and were going to disband glee club, so we decided to make our own and told everyone who still wanted to be part of it to join us," Nick explains smugly. "We told them how you were too rattled by what happened yesterday to focus."

"But that's because-"

"Someone attacked you. Luckily I was there before you were seriously hurt."

"Yeah, lucky you were there to try to ra-"

"Jace. I mean this in the nicest way, but you should probably watch what you say around here," he says, putting a hand on my shoulder. I detect a threat in his tone. "With this criminal still on the loose at the school, you wouldn't want to upset him and make him retaliate again."

"Is that a threat?" I challenge.

"No threats, Jason. Just a warning. I'd hate it if something bad happened to you because you got reckless. You have a habit of doing that."

The dangerous look in his eyes tells me I better keep my mouth shut.

"Y-you're right," I stammer, looking at the ground. "I should be more careful."

"Great, great. So I'll pick you up at 7?"

"W-what?!"

"Jace," he pouts. "You didn't forget you promised me a date tonight, _did you?_ "

"A-as much as I'd love to go on a date with you, I-I have to take a rain check on that," I mutter. Did he seriously try to coerce me into a date after what he did? Nick narrows his eyes at me, but covers it up with a smile. A shiver runs down my spine.

"That's too bad, Jason. Maybe I'll stop by your place later instead for a bit," he says. All the blood drains from my face. I hope he doesn't follow me home.

"Y-yeah, cool," I cough. Somehow, I manage to move my numb legs out of the auditorium. I needed to find Aiden. Yes, it was the middle of the day, but I could not spend another minute here with Nick practically breathing down my neck.

He had to be in the music room. I can't believe Professor Edwin is still making him clean the music room even though he's not even the one who trashed it. I bust through the doors, making Aiden jump.

"Jason! What's wrong?" he asks with panic in his voice. "Are you hurt?"

"No, I just need to go home. Now."

"Oh my god, did he touch you?"

"No! Just let me borrow your keys!"

"Only if you tell me what the problem is. I'm worried about your health, Jason."

"I don't want to discuss it," I say.

"We talked about this, remember? You said you'd listen to me more. So I need you to listen to me now."

"So you just expect me to spill my guts whenever you feel like it?" I retort.

"Please don't try to start another fight with me, Jay," he says, his fists clenching. He jams his hand in his pocket and gives me the keys. "It's not worth my time anymore."

With that, he turns his back on me and doesn't say a word. I rush out of the school, not looking back. I don't even stop until I'm right in front of the house door. I hurriedly jam the keys into the locks and go in and lock the door again. Then, I catch my breath. My heart is pounding out of my chest. Just to be sure, I lock all the doors and close all the windows. Then that ugly voice in my head starts to bother me.

 _You're so damn paranoid, Jason._

 _With good reason! Nick's still stalking me, and with the whole school thinking he's some hero, there's nothing to stop him!_

 _Maybe you should be happy about all this attention he's giving you._

 _Happy?! Are you nuts?! Nick's a psycho!_

 _You can't deny you must have tempted him somehow. All those provocative dances you do during your performances, the way you sway your hips...freaking slut. No wonder Nick wanted a piece of that._

 _I didn't ask to be stalked and assaulted!_

 _Sure, you didn't ask for it verbally, but you didn't fight Nick enough when he made advances on you._

 _I was paralyzed with fear...he could've hurt me._

 _Who's fault was that?_

 _...mine._

I stay under my blankets until I hear Aiden come home. He knocks on my door.

"Jason? Can I come in?" his voice is firm, making it sound more like a command than a question.

"Sure." I say. He walks in and sits on the edge of my bed.

"You got something you want to tell me, Jay?" he asks softly. I groan and hide my head under the blankets.

"Uuuuugh!"

"This is _not_ helping your case, Jason. I want to help you feel better."

"Gee, you're doing a great job of that barging in and demanding that I talk. Damn, are you always this annoying?"

"Why does everything with you have to be a struggle? I thought talking out our problems would improve our relationship, but all it seems to be doing is making things worse!"

"Well if I'm just making things worse, then why don't you just leave?" I say, stomping up and yanking open the door. Ooh, I have a major headache now and he's not making it any better. A hurt expression crosses Aiden's face.

"Maybe I will!"

He scowls and stalks out, slamming the door. A picture on the wall wobbles and crashes to the ground, shattering instantly. I ignore it.

"You know, for someone who claims, he knows how to help people, you're not pretty fucking helpful!"

He yells something, but he's too far away from the door for me to hear it.

"What!?"

" _I said, how long are you going to keep pushing everyone away, Jason?_ How… *sniff* how long?"

There's a hint of sadness mixed with anger in his voice. That's the last I hear of him until dinner. When I get to the table, his parents are there. Aiden isn't.

"I wonder what's taking Aiden so long," his father says.

"I bet he's probably been hit with a creative streak," his mother chuckles. "I'll go get him from his room."

An uneasy feeling settles in the pit of my stomach. Our argument did not go well. Aiden's mother rushes back downstairs, a worried expression on her face.

"Where is he?" his dad asks.

"He's not in his room or the bathroom. He's not even in the study or the foyer," she says sadly. Someone's phone rings. Mrs. Zhou immediately picks it up. I hold my breath, assuming the worst. "Hello? Aiden, where are you? It's 7 p.m.! You're going to have to leave your school friends 'cause it's a school night...wait, what's wrong? Precious, I can't understand you….you're where?! Aiden Zhou, are you crazy?!...I'm sure it was just a misunderstanding...oh...are you sure?...well, just make sure you continue to go to school...Bye, precious."

"What happened?" I dare to ask.

"Aiden left early this evening. He's very upset about something. He wouldn't tell me what."

"Where is he?"

"He told me not to tell you or else you'd go looking for him. He said he needed a place to clear his head for a while. He's not sure when he'll come back home."

I inhale sharply. The last time Aiden left home was last year, when things were bad with his mother and his abusive ex.

"Jason?" Mr. Zhou says. "Is something wrong?"

"Do you know what's wrong with Aiden?" His mother asks.

"We...we had an argument earlier," I admit.

"What about?"

"I thought he was being too overprotective of me and lashed out at him."

"Is something going on at school that the two of you aren't telling me about?"

"We...I can handle it. It's just some idiot at school," I lie. "May I be excused?"

"But you've barely touched your food, Jason," she says, pressing a hand to my forehead. "I hope you're not sick."

"Nope. I've never felt better," I say before rushing upstairs into Aiden's room. Some of his drawers were open and clothes strewn on the floor. I search for any clue that would tell me where he went. Nothing.

I head back to my room. The fallen picture was still on the floor. I pick it up and nearly start bawling. It's the picture frame he gave me on our anniversary, the inscription still somewhat legible. He has his arms thrown around me and happily kissing me on the cheek. _I'm so happy to have this wonderful, handsome man in my life._ He was happy. _We_ were happy. I root through the closet until I pull out the red jacket he got me and hold it close to my chest.

Minutes later, I'm outside at night in that jacket, calling Aiden's name until my voice goes hoarse. I sigh heavily. I wasn't going to find him tonight. I turn to head home when someone grabs my wrist and twists it behind my back.

"Finally," the husky voice chuckles.

"I don't have any money!" I exclaim. The voice laughs again.

"I don't want your money, Jace," he says, and my face goes white. "We both know I want you."

"HEL-" Nick covers my mouth before I can scream.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you," he warns menacingly. "Have you forgotten I used to be a wrestler? Too bad Zhou isn't here to save you now."

He slowly removes his hand from my mouth, his other hand still holding my wrist.

"H-how did you find me?" I ask.

"It's not hard to track a boy screaming the name of his ex-boyfriend in the dead of night."

"He's _not_ my ex-boyfriend! It's complicated…"

All of my hair is standing on end with the way his body is so close behind mine.

"Well, allow me to uncomplicate things…"

I feel his hand slide down my waist and under my shirt. At this, I jerk my body from his grasp, screaming as loud as I possibly could.

"No, _no_ , _no_ , _**no**_!" I yell. I was definitely getting people's attention. House lights came on. Dogs started barking. Nick glares at me, but does nothing.

"This isn't over, Parker," he snarls. "One way or another, you'll be mine."

With one last withering glance in my direction, he takes off. I run the opposite way, not stopping until I was behind the door and locked it. I stowed away in my room for the rest of the night, clutching my jacket and sobbing into my pillow.

Aiden's POV

"I'm quite surprised you decided to come here after all," my uncle jokes as he opens the door. "I thought you said you hated my new music shop."

"I said it wasn't the same as the old one, _Shūshu_ ," I say quietly. My uncle takes in my expression.

"You don't look happy, _wǒ de xiǎo gāngqín jiā_. (my little pianist) What's the matter?"

"It's about Jason…"

"He didn't hurt you, did he?"

"No! It's just...I'm worried about him. There's a guy at our school that's been harassing her. Er, him. Once he almost…"

He understands what I'm trying to say and pats my head in consolation.

"Aiden, it's not your fault. He escaped, didn't he?"

"But only because I happened to be at the right place at the right time. Had I been a few minutes late… _ugh, that bastard!_ "

I clench my fists at the thought of Nick trying to hurt him. My blue eyed freckled prince. Yes, I was very mad at him, but he doesn't deserve this treatment. No one does.

"Sweet child, your heart bleeds for him, doesn't it?"

"Yes. I know he's hurting...but he didn't have to say those things to me," I mumble, still reeling from Jay's harsh words. "That's why I had to leave before either one of us would say something we wouldn't be able to take back. I'm not going to talk to him until...until my birthday I guess. I'll be turning 18."

"That's in less than two weeks, child. Are you sure you don't need more time?"

"I survived years without Jason in my life. This is nothing," I assert.

"But you'll still see him at school, won't you?"

"I'll get my friends to talk to him. _Shūshu_ , I don't know what to do anymore. I just feel so useless in relationships. Every person I dated, every time...it ends in disaster. I'm starting to think that maybe it's not them, it's me."

"Don't say that, Aiden. I know you're a wonderful boyfriend. I remember how happy Jason was when I met him."

"Yeah, he kissed me in the snow...he knew who I was before I knew who _he_ was...he was going to hide that from me...just like everything else he hides from me. It's like every time I manage to get him to lower his walls a little, he'd raise them up even higher. I need him...and I'd like him to need me too."

"Well, there's a saying that sometimes two people need to fall apart before they can fall together."

" _Shūshu_ , I'm not in the mood for a lecture."

"Ok, ok. Just put your bag down in the back and we can have takeout."

I put my hand to my chest in mock horror.

" _Shūshu_ , eating commercial takeout would dishonor our Chinese ancestors," I gasp, pretending to fall over.

"At least you're not sad anymore," he chuckles, ruffling my hair. I sigh once he's out of the room. I had a long two weeks ahead of me…

Ava's POV

"What are you going to name your kids?" Uma asks, rubbing my belly. It's lunch time at school and the twins seem to think that it's recess and the playground is my belly.

"I don't know...I'd never thought I'd have to choose so soon."

She kisses my cheek.

"I'm gonna be with you the whole way," she says softly. She gently presses her lips to mine, cupping my cheeks.

"I don't even know how she can stand to be with her," I hear someone right behind us sneer. I don't even have to turn around to know that it's Patty and her group of friends.

"Don't you have anything better to do with your life, Patty?" I snap.

"I know your little girlfriend can do better, Avie," she teases.

"You leave Ava alone," Uma pipes up.

"Or, what, _Nicole_?" Patty demands, getting real close to us and out of earshot of her friends. "Because if I remember correctly, you two don't get to tell me what to do."

"Why do you hate Ava so much?" Uma asks.

"That bitch had the nerve to punch me in the face!"

"You deserved it for being a pain in the ass," I hiss.

"Oh, yeah? Well, you're-"

She stops abruptly, clutching her stomach. She puts a hand over her mouth, her face green. She runs off in the direction of the bathroom. Her posee follows after her.

"I wonder how long before they realize that she's getting sick for a reason," I comment.

"Avie, what are we going to do? Patty could ruin us!"

"Then we'll ruin her. Find something something about her that's so horrible that she'll have to back off."

"But how are we gonna do that?"

"Hey guys, have you seen Aiden anywhere?" Jason asks, walking up to us. Now that, is the voice of a rattled boy. I wonder what's freaking him out. We haven't really hung out often. Uma and I share a look.

"We don't know," I lie. "Dude, are you ok, though?"

"I-I'm fine," he stammers, pulling his jacket even closer to his body. "Just had a rough night. I gotta go…"

He speedwalks past us.

"What's up with him?" Uma asks sadly.

"I don't know. I haven't heard from Rose or Ace either. I'm sure we'll find out during the lock-in in a few weeks."

"Ooh, a lock-in! I can't wait!" Uma giggles, her hair bouncing as she claps excitedly.

"I can't wait until we take Patty down," I say.


	15. Update

Hey, guys. It's been a while. I've decided that while i am continuing this part of Pheonix, I've decided to rewrite it so the plot's less rushed.

Bye.


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